-------------------------------------------------------------------- BATTLEFRONT Strategic Studies Group (SSG) -------------------------------------------------------------------- Note: The following are taken from an IBM/PC version? -------------------------------------------------------------------- This collection contains SSG's Battlefront Game System engine from Panzer Battles, as well as all scenarios from the other three Battlefront Games: Rommel, Macarthur's War and Halls of Montezuma. All scenarios can be accessed by selecting "Battlefront: Panzer Battles" and then selecting the appropriate scenario of your choice as per the instructions below. THE GAME ROUTINES 1. THE BATTLEFRONT GAME SYSTEM The Battlefront Game System is Strategic Studies Group's multi-award winning land combat simulation system. This manual covers all games that use the Battlefront system. Computer specific information, scenario details and an introductory tutorial are contained in the Scenario Booklet. To get started with the game, we recommend that you complete the following steps: 1. Read the computer specific information for details on installation and start-up. 2. Read Chapters Two of this manual for an overview of the game system. 3. Play the introductory tutorial included in the Scenario Booklet. 4. Select any scenario and start playing, referring to this manual as necessary. You should read the Player's Notes for a particular scenario before playing it for the first time as they contain useful background information. This manual contains two major sections. Part One, The Game Routines explains the operation of the game system and contains all that you need to know to play a game. Part Two, WarPlan explains the operations of the scenario design routines, including WarPaint, SSG's icon and terrain editor. While you do not need to read this section to play the game, it will provide some insights into the deeper workings of the game system. In addition, we would encourage everyone to find out just how easy it is to modify scenarios with WarPlan. 2. HOW THE GAME PLAYS Before asking you to go through the introductory tutorial, which you will find in the scenario booklet, we recommend you read this chapter. Choose the scenario you wish to play. Experienced players may wish to vary an existing scenario or to create an entirely new one. Select a normal or enhanced game. Enhanced games give random but powerful benefits to any computer player. Choose a handicap level for the game. Handicap levels act as a multiplier on the points accumulated by either player. Unlike Enhancement, they do not affect the artificial intelligence or the combat performance of the protagonists. Choose sides; i.e. whether the game will be played between two humans, one human (either as the Axis or Allied player) or no humans. Note the mode is a very useful tool for historical analysis and for testing original scenarios. You may also edit the names of the opposing commanders at this stage. The game is now ready to play. Each scenario lasts for a set number of turns; up to 99. There are four turns to each day (am, noon, pm and nite) so that the maximum length of a scenario is 25 days. The military forces at your command range from battalion-size units to division-size units, depending on the scenario. These are your basic fighting men. They are organised into larger formations to reflect a proper military hierarchy. The battlefield on which you fight is a field of hexagons up to 39 across and 28 down. The ground scale varies from scenario to scenario, ranging from 500 metres to 8 kms (0.3 to 5 miles). Different types of terrain are represented by different terrain icons. Roads, rivers, forts and cities are shown. Places of special significance are designated as objective hexes, and victory points are awarded for control of these at different times in the game. It is your job as Commander to use this time, these forces and these conditions to capture and hold as many of your objectives as you can, to destroy as many of the enemy units as you can get your hands on and, of course, to prevent your opponent from doing this to you. The player who has scored the most number of points by the end of the game is the winner. 3. THE TYPES OF GAME MENUS The order menus which drive the game can be divided into four types * Branch Menus - These menus signpost the route to other menus [2, 4, 8, 9, 13, 14]. Note that most of them also provide some information. * Information Menus - These menus provide specific information on the various forces and functions in the game [5, 6, 7, 15]. * Action Menus - These menus are the centre of the game system. All of the orders used in the game are given through them [3, 10, 11, 12, 16, 17, 18, 19]. * Single Function Menus - [1] 4. THE GAME MENUS DESCRIBED Menu H (Game Master) This screen always appears at the beginning of each turn. It is common to both players. It is the first screen you will see after completing the scenario selection details and selecting . You are told the turn number, the time of day and date, the atmospheric weather for this turn and the weather forecast. In a two (human) player game you will be able to select either or . In a one (human) player game a solid bar will be overprinted across the nationality controlled by the computer. The arrow keys will not access a line overprinted with a solid bar. is the key which activates the turn. Do not select it until all players have issued their orders. In daylight turns, the line will be overprinted with a solid bar until all players have accessed at least Menu 1. In night turns, there is no insurance on the line since it is usual (and advisable) to let your men get some sleep. The line can be accessed at any time and is the means by which the `save game' routines are utilised. Please see Menu 3 (Save Game Utility) for full details of these routines. The line allows IBM users to return to the main menu or DOS. Menu 1 (Save Game Utility) This is a single function menu which allows you to load or save a game, change the DOS path to the current disk or directory or load an 'auto saved game' if present. To save a game, locate the line with the arrow keys and type (RET). A large catalog window displays a list of current save game files. Use an arrow key to move the cursor bar to the location in which you wish to save the game. If that location contains an existing file, then the current game will be saved over that file. Empty slots are marked 'free'. When you have chosen a location, type (RET). The menu window now displays the and lines Choosing allows you to edit both the name of the game and a three line synopsis. When you are ready, locate the line and type (RET). To load a game, choose . Use the arrow keys to move the cursor bar to the desired game location and type (RET). The chosen game will be loaded. The command allows you to change the current disk or directory for loading and/or saving games. The default is the directory from which the game was run. When typing disk identifiers, please type a colon (:) after the drive letter (e. g. B:). The path is limited to 26 characters. Save game disks must be formatted by DOS before use. The command will load an auto saved game if one is present. Menu 2 (Operations) This is a branch menu. The information which appears to the left of the menu window displays your nationality, parent unit formation, the commander's name, the number of victory points accumulated by your side to date and whether your force is night capable. You should decide whether you want to look at the available information before giving your orders. If you select you will be given access to four categories of information. Menus 5-7 will give you all the details. If you select you will be given access to the decision making (or action) menus of the game. Menus 8-19 will give you all the details. We recommend that you make use of the menu every turn and then issue your orders. A list of the things you should keep an eye on is included in the description of each report menu. If you select , IBM users will be given access to five optional features. Menu 3 will give you all the details. Apple II/C-64 users have the line replaced with . The option is for use when, for whatever reason, you wish to end the game. The game will stop and the end of game screen will be printed. You will be prompted to avoid accidental resignations. The line appears only during night turns. In most circumstances you will want to rest your men at night. To issue orders you will first have to select , which will then display the line. This additional step has been included as a precaution against accidentally committing your forces at night. All men on both sides will normally sleep at night unless specifically given an order. You may carry out all actions up to actually issuing an order without waking them up. Orders issued through Menus 16-18 will activate the junior HQ for the night. This is the only irreversible decision you can make except, of course, selecting . You should not attack at night unless you have very good reasons. See Chapter 9 (Tactics). Menu 3 (Options) There are five options available. The line will tell you the final score if the scenario were to end at this point. Hit any key to return to the options menu. The line will display a couple of paragraphs of handy hints for the scenario. Hit any key to return to the options menu. The line operates as explained in the previous section. The line toggles the sound on/off. The line activates the Auto Save feature. When Auto Save is on, the scenario in play will be saved at the end of each turn. Only one file is maintained and it is over-written each turn with the current turn. This file can be loaded using the line in Start Menu C. Menu 4 (General Reports) This is a branch menu that directs you to each of the three report menus. Use the arrow keys to select the required report and then type (RET). Menu 5 (Unit Status) This is an information menu. Use the arrow keys to locate a particular friendly senior HQ (usually a division) and type (RET). The map is replaced with a full screen text display of the current state of the chosen senior HQ. At the top of the screen are the displays for the senior HQ's assets. The remaining units in the formation are grouped under junior HQs. The junior HQ I.D. appears inside a box on the left of the screen together with its combat state and supply state. Both of these concepts are explained in detail in subsequent menus. The value of this information is that it will give you a concise summary of the condition of every unit in a senior HQ on a single screen. It complements the information available on the line of Menus 16-18. Menu 6 (Examine Objectives) This is an information menu. Use the arrow keys to cycle through each friendly objective. Alternatively, you can type the name of a particular objective which you want to examine. A box will appear in the bottom left of the screen containing the name as you type it. When you have typed enough letters for the computer to distinguish a unique name, the cursor will move to that objective and information on it will be displayed. The centre section of the display shows a row of icons which illustrates the terrain type, shows who controls the objective and reveals the presence of known forts, cities and minefields. The terrain type is named above the icons while the name of the objective appears below the icons. IBM users will be given the identity of any senior HQ assigned to that objective. The left section of the display shows which turns the objective is active for, how many VPs are earned for its occupation each turn and at game's end and the number of turns the objective has been held to date. There is a schematic display of the map in the lower right which indicates the map size and the current location of the cursor in relation to the full map. Knowing where your objectives are and their relative value to you in victory points will make it much easier for you to deploy your forces. Whenever possible, secure every objective within reach and be prepared to defend them for as long as possible. Frequent checking of this menu will ensure, for example, that you don't defend a particular objective too long (i.e. past the expiry point for earning VPs). It will also keep you aware of when an objective needs to be secured in time to get the most VPs from it. Menu 7 (Map Walk) This is an information menu. You are given control of the cursor which may be moved at will around the map by the use of the 1-6 keys or the I,J,K,M keys. IBM users can use the f1-f10 keys to move from one 13 x 7 section of the map to another; f1 corresponds to the top left sector, f2 to the top centre sector, etc. Friendly objectives are identified as flashing objective icons. You can (and should) use this menu to get information on enemy units. It is also useful for examining terrain, especially in active portions of the map, and as another source of information on the condition of friendly units. Position the cursor over an enemy unit. In the lower left of the screen you will be told the type of enemy unit identified (either infantry, armour, artillery or HQ), whether it is contacted or not and, if contacted, an indication of the size of the enemy unit. Type (0) to centre the screen on the cursor. In the lower centre of the screen you will be told the type of terrain occupied by the enemy unit, and shown the icons for terrain, control, city or mine, and forts. If the hex is an objective its name will appear below the icons. You may also position the cursor over a friendly unit. The information presented on the unit is in exactly the same format as the information available to you when you select Menu 15 (Examine Friendly Units). Please see that section for full details. If you position the cursor over an objective hex unoccupied by any units, you will get the same information on the objective as you received in Menu 6 (Examine Friendly Objective). Please see that menu for full details. There is a schematic display of the map in the lower right which indicates the map size and the current location of the cursor in relation to the full map. Typing (RET) brings up a menu in the bottom right of the screen. There are three options which may be toggled on or off. will define the front line by displaying a line of friendly control markers which define the territory controlled by each player. Note that forts and minefields may take some time to clear. When an enemy fort or minefield has been cleared the fort or mine symbol will disappear. clears all roads and forts from the map. removes all unit icons from the map. These effects are cumulative. For instance, if is selected, all unit icons are removed. Menu 8 (Senior HQ Select) This is primarily a branch menu for the selection of your senior HQs. To the left of the menu, each senior HQ's current order (if any) is displayed for IBM users; Apple II/C-64 users are told the senior HQ's identity. Use the arrow keys to locate a particular senior HQ and then type (RET) to select it. Note that senior HQs not in the game will be overprinted with a solid bar and not accessible to the arrow keys. Menu 9 (Senior HQ Order) This is primarily a branch menu for the selection of senior HQ orders. To the left of the menu, a description of the formation is provided. You are told the name and type of the formation, the quality of its leadership, administration and supply (poor, fair, good or excell't) and a percentage estimate of total losses suffered to date. IBM users are told the number of units in the formation and how many of them have been KIA'd (killed in action) to date. Senior HQ leadership is important in combat. It remains fixed throughout the game. Senior HQ administration is important in junior HQ resupply, obtaining replacements and ease of movement. It remains fixed throughout the game, unlike junior HQ administration which fluctuates with the course of the battle. Senior HQ supply is the major determinant of junior HQ resupply. It remains fixed throughout the game, unlike junior HQ supply which fluctuates with the course of the battle. Use the arrow keys to locate a particular line from the menu and then type (RET) to select it. Note that orders which are currently not available for selection will be overprinted with a solid bar and not accessible to the arrow keys. IBM users have an additional item in the menu. They may select to review the condition of the entire formation. This status display is identical to the one in Menu 5. Menu 10 (Move Senior HQ) This is an action menu. The cursor is centred over the senior HQ. Friendly objectives are indicated by flashing target symbols. Use the 1-6 keys or the I,J,K,M keys to select the location you wish the HQ to move to and then type (RET). If this location is illegal (i.e. the computer can't get there), the cursor will return to the line. If the HQ has no movement points a message `No Movement' will appear in the bottom left of the screen and the error beep will sound. Otherwise, you will be returned to Menu 10 and the word will appear next to the supply rating. HQs cannot be ordered to an enemy controlled hex and are not allowed to move through enemy controlled hexes. In subsequent movement phases, the HQ will move as best it can toward its objective. Once it reaches its destination, it will move no further until given a fresh order. In any subsequent turn, a new objective can be assigned to a senior HQ. The old objective is voided and the HQ will try to move to the new destination. A senior HQ has an important role in the game. It is the source of supply for its junior HQs, the administrative centre determining how efficiently supplies and replacements are delivered and a major factor in the ease of troop movement. These are the only units in the game over which the player has direct control; i.e. which can be directed to a specific hex. When deciding where to place a senior HQ, keep the following points in mind. * Units given reserve orders (either junior HQs or assets) will head for their senior HQ and deploy once they get within three hexes of it. * Junior HQs must trace a line of supply (LOS) to their senior HQ each turn to receive supplies and/or replacements. * We recommend you keep your senior HQs about 6-10 hexes away from enemy units and directly to the rear of friendly units. Once you've had a bit of experience with their placement, you can try something more adventurous. A senior HQ functions more efficiently if it is not moved. As far as possible, endeavour to keep to a minimum the number of times you must move it. Don't forget your senior HQs! They never move of their own volition unless they are on the edge of the map or within two hexes of an enemy unit. You must place them where you want them. It is easy to overlook them in the heat of battle. There is nothing worse than finding your senior HQ in the front line and realising too late that all those troops you thought were refitting in the rear have been caught with their proverbial pants down. It is especially important to keep an eye on your senior HQs when you are expecting them as reinforcements. No matter what mode they arrive in they should be put somewhere safe and useful immediately. If your junior HQs have no LOS you should check the location of the senior HQ. IBM users should note that senior HQs in dangerous situations may shatter. This means the HQ will rout back to the nearest friendly objective. Menu 11 (Assign Assets) This is an action menu. Use the arrow keys to locate a particular asset. If the asset is currently attached to a junior HQ, all units in that junior HQ will be highlighted with their specific unit icon. In the lower centre of the screen, the identity and current attachment of each asset is displayed. In the lower left of the screen, the current state of the asset unit is displayed. You are told the unit I.D., unit type (INFantry, ARMour or ARTillery), equipment used (e. g. 50mm AT), fatigue condition (exh'd, tired, fit, fresh), experience (green, trained, veteran, elite), and percentage casualties to date. IBM users are told the current order of the junior HQ (if any) to which the asset is attached. Once you have located the chosen asset, type (RET) to select it. The unit may be either assigned to a junior HQ or placed into reserve. Use the arrow keys to select between and . If you select , you are then asked which one. Use the arrow keys and (RET) to make your decision. IBM users can select or the particular junior HQ from the same menu. Assets should be allocated to the junior HQs which need them the most. In general, this will be junior HQs with attack orders or those in tight situations. Each senior HQ can control up to four assets. Note that the assets of one senior HQ are not transferable to another senior HQ. The type of asset is important when deciding assignments. For example, assault guns, assault engineers and artillery are very useful in attack while anti-tank guns, tank destroyers and the ubiquitous artillery will be of use in defence. Keep a careful eye on the condition of your assets. Place them into reserve when they become ineffective; i.e. their losses exceed 50% and/or they are exhausted. Assets assume the supply state of whichever junior HQ they are attached to. Assets placed in reserve will head for their senior HQ and deploy once they are within three hexes of it. The assignment of assets does not become irreversible until is selected. Until that point, you may return to this menu and reassign any or all of the assets. Menu 12 (Allocate Support) This is an action menu. The information to the left of the screen tells you the time of day, the date, the current air power situation (i.e. which player controls the air and to what degree), the number of off-board support points (OBS) which may be allocated and the number still to be allocated this turn. IBM users cannot access this menu unless they begin the turn with at least 1 support point available. Use the arrow keys to locate a particular junior HQ and then enter the number of support points you wish to allocate to that formation. You can cancel an entry by hitting the space bar or by going back to the junior HQ and re-entering a new number. You will not be allowed to allocate more support points than you have available nor will you be able to access junior HQs not yet active. In general, junior HQs with attack orders (especially assault) should get the most support. Junior HQs in tough/desperate defensive situations also need all the help they can get. However, support points are most effective when assaulting or exploiting, and less effective in all other situations. Correctly proportioning support to your junior HQs will have a major effect on the outcome of most battles. Be careful not to forget that you have up to three senior HQs; don't allocate all your support points to just one of them without good reason. As with all the menus in this game, the decisions made here do not become final until you go back to Menu H and select . Up until that point, you can come back to this menu (or any other for that matter) and re-allocate the support points as many times as you wish. Menu 13 (Junior HQ Select) This is a branch menu. Use the arrow keys to locate a particular junior HQ and then type (RET) to select it. Junior HQs not in play (either not present or future reinforcements) will be overprinted with a solid bar and not accessible by the arrow keys. Each junior HQ's I.D. and current order appear in the lower centre of the screen on the line corresponding to their position in the menu. If all the units in a particular junior HQ have 0 MPs, then IBM users are told that the formation is static. Menu 14 (Junior HQ Action) This is a branch menu. The information displayed to the left of the menu tells you the senior and junior HQ I.D., the type of junior HQ, junior HQ leadership, administration and supply state (poor, fair, good, excel't), percentage losses to date, the number of units in the junior HQ and the brittleness level if one has been set. The junior HQ is attached to a single unit from the formation, usually the one farthest from enemy units. Throughout the game, the location of the junior HQ will shift from unit to unit in response to the ebb and flow of battle. There is nothing the player can do to affect the location of the junior HQ. They cannot be destroyed until the last unit from the formation is destroyed. Note that the junior HQ can be located with an asset assigned to the formation. At every stage of the game, an active junior HQ (i.e. one with at least one unit on the map) will be in one of three states. These are , and . The computer determines which state the junior HQ is currently in. The current state of a junior HQ determines which actions it may perform. A junior HQ in an state is more or less toe to toe with the enemy. As a useful rule of thumb, a junior HQ will count as engaged whenever two or more of its units are within two hexes of the same enemy unit. A junior HQ in a state is in proximity to enemy units. At least one unit is within two hexes of an enemy unit. The enemy unit responsible for triggering an or state is identified by the target icon. An asset cannot trigger the or state unless there are no surviving, non-artillery units organic to the junior HQ. In other circumstances, a junior HQ is in a state. Thus, only one of the three junior HQ actions is available to the player. The other two are overprinted with a solid bar and are not accessible to the arrow keys. A junior HQ will keep the same action from turn to turn unless you step in and issue new orders or circumstances change. If the combat state does change (e. g. from to ), then the default actions for each of the three states are (deploy), (defend) and (defend). In this circumstance, the computer will select the default action for you if you don't issue an order yourself. The line is always available. It is used to get a detailed breakdown of the condition of each unit in the junior HQ, including assigned assets. Use the arrow keys to locate the available junior HQ action line or the line and type (RET) to select it. IBM users can access the routines as described earlier. Menu 15 (Detailed OB) This is an information menu. Use the arrow keys to cycle through each unit. All of the units in the junior HQ are identified by their specific unit icons. Assets attached to the junior HQ from the senior HQ reserve are also included. The information presented here is identical to that obtained for friendly units under the map walk routines. For each unit you are told the I.D., the unit type (INF, ARM or ART), its equipment, its fatigue (exh'd, tired, fit or fresh) and experience (green, trained, veteran or elite), its percentage loss to date and its movement class (mech, non-mech or static). It is a good idea to have a careful look through your OBs on the first turn and at regular intervals throughout the game. Once a junior HQ's average casualties start to mount, you must plan to have it relieved before a real disaster can occur. Never forget that the worst casualty rates occur when your men are worn out, hungry and have already sustained substantial losses. Menu 16 (Ready Action) This is an action menu. Use the arrow keys to locate the action of your choice and then type (RET). There are four actions which may be made by a junior HQ in the state. Note that the information to the left of the menu will depend upon which action is selected. Reserve. A junior HQ given reserve orders will attempt to move its units behind its senior HQ and deploy them there. A unit with a deploy instruction will seek out the best defensive terrain in the immediate vicinity. A junior HQ in reserve is more likely to recover fatigue, receive replacements, be resupplied and to re-establish its administrative routine than a junior HQ in any other state. This refitting procedure will be much enhanced when the component units of the junior HQ are more than two hexes from enemy units. The reserve state is an inefficient formation for fighting so you have to be careful when issuing this order. It is always a bit tricky to rescue a junior HQ from a tight combat situation. Please see the notes on the action under Menus 17 (Contact Action) and 18 (Engaged Action). Selecting a state under the menu is usually pretty safe. Just make sure your senior HQ is out of harm's way and 6-10 hexes clear of enemy units. Obj'tive. Use the arrow keys to locate the friendly objective of your choice and then type (RET) to select it. As each objective is located, information describing it appears to the left of the menu. IBM users will see the name of any senior HQ assigned to that objective. Please see the notes under Menu 6 (Examine Objectives) for full details. Once an objective is chosen, the component units of the junior HQ (including any assets) will move towards it, generally selecting the quickest route. This action is the principal means of manoeuvre for uncommitted junior HQs. Use it to get your men into position to engage the enemy. Enemy. Use the arrow keys to locate the enemy unit of your choice and then type (RET) to select it. As each enemy unit is located, information describing it appears to the left of the menu. Please see the notes under Menu 7 (Examine Map/Units) for full details. Only those enemy units within 8 hexes of the friendly unit to which the junior HQ is currently attached can be selected by this action. Once an enemy unit is chosen, the component units of the junior HQ (including any assets) will move towards it, following the most direct route. You use this action to send your units into battle! Deploy. This action is chosen in those circumstances where there are no enemy units nearby but nevertheless you wish the junior HQ to remain in place, presumably to counter a future threat. Individual units will seek out the best defensive locations in the immediate vicinity within supporting distance of each other and await your further instructions. Remember that is the default action for the state. This means that a junior HQ given a order while in the state will revert to a order if its state changes to . You should check on the state of junior HQs given orders if you wish them to remain in reserve. See Menu 14 (Junior HQ Action) for full details. Menu 17 (Contact Action) This is an action menu. Use the arrow keys to locate the action of your choice and then type (RET). There are four actions which may be made by a junior HQ in the state. Reserve. This action has the same effect as it does in the preceding menu (and the following one for that matter). You just have to be more careful when using it as enemy units will be much closer to you. If at all possible, commit a fresh junior HQ to the front before withdrawing a worn out one. Sometimes this is not possible and you'll just have to hope that your men can outrun their pursuers. Remember the enemy will be operating in hostile territory while you will (hopefully) be in friendly territory. Defend. This action is basically self-explanatory. Units within two hexes of enemy units dig in in situ while others in the junior HQ deploy to the best defensive terrain in their immediate vicinity. It is the safest formation and when in danger (or in doubt), select it. Remember that is the default action for the state. See Menu 15 (Junior HQ Action) for full details. (c). Support. This action is a more vigorous type of defence. Units within two hexes of enemy units will dig in as they do with the action; however, all other units from the junior HQ (including assets) will move up to support the contacted unit/s. This action is chosen either to stiffen the defence of a particular sector or to assemble the junior HQ's components in preparation for a planned future offensive. Don't select it when you're heavily outnumbered and short of reinforcements/reserves. If you don't want anybody to move, use . Probe. This is the most aggressive response you can make while in the state. Rather than dig in, those units within two hexes of enemy units immediately launch a limited attack while the other units from the junior HQ move up into supporting positions in the expectation of contributing to the battle in the next turn. This action should not be taken unless you have considerable superiority and a pressing need for some decisive achievement or for concentration of your own men. Menu 18 (Engaged Action) This is an action menu. Use the arrow keys to locate the action of your choice and then type (RET). There are four actions which may be made by a junior HQ in the state. Reserve. Please refer to the notes in the two previous menus. Defend. Please refer to the notes in the previous menu. Remember that is the default action for the state. See Menu 15 (Junior HQ Action) for full details. Delay. If the junior HQ is subjected to a major attack, it will withdraw in the direction of its senior HQ. This action will minimise losses from full scale assaults at the price of conceding ground. Uncontacted units from that junior HQ will move up to support the engaged unit/s. Attack. This action is not an operative command in itself. It directs you to a subsidiary menu wherein you choose the type of attack you wish to launch. When it comes time to get the job done, you'll have to hit this key! Menu 19 (Attack Action) This is the ultimate action menu. The decisions you make here will be vital in determining the outcome of the battle. The type of attack you should choose will depend on the current circumstances. The single most important thing to remember is that the action is not automatically the most effective way of destroying your opponent! Use the arrow keys to locate the action of your choice and then type (RET). There are four actions which may be made by a junior HQ in the state. (a). Probe. This is a conservative and exploratory type of attack. It reduces your losses to the minimum while giving you a good idea of your opponent's strength. You won't do much damage to the enemy. Should you experience a simultaneous attack from your opponent, you will be in the best condition (given that you are attacking) to receive it. It has the same effect as a under Menu 17. (b). Prepare. To all intents and purposes, this appears to be another attack. However, it is simply a diversion while the junior HQ prepares to launch a full scale assault. You will inflict the same level of damage on the enemy as you would with a attack but you are much more vulnerable to a counter-attack. Junior HQs attacked while executing a order can get quite badly chewed up. The value of this order is that it makes a subsequent assault very much more effective. You really must use prepared assaults against tough enemy opposition. A done on the pm turn may be effective (i.e. assist an ) on the following am turn, but this is not certain. A has no bonus for an . (c). Assault. These are full scale attacks using every component of the junior HQ which is in a condition to participate. They can result in horrendous losses for both sides. Make sure you allocate as much off-board support and as many assets as you can spare. Every little bit helps! (d). Exploit. This type of attack should be launched against a weak enemy position. It gives the attacker the greatest opportunity to advance after the fighting. It will only be truly effective if your opponent is KIA'd or routed. Do not use it against a tough enemy position; your losses could well reach unacceptable levels. 5. THE COMBAT ROUTINES (a). Major Combat. There are two types of combat. For convenience, they are referred to as major combat and minor combat. The effective combat radius of all units is 2 hexes, regardless of type. Certain ranged units can be effective up to 15 hexes from their target. It is quite important to remember that the exact positions of the opposing units matter only insofar as units must be within 2 hexes or within range of an enemy unit to fight. We consider this type of arrangement to be preferable to the difficulty of showing units stacked up on a two-dimensional display. A unit under attack can receive support from friendly units within 2 hexes (or range) of itself. Units with the same junior HQ I.D. are much more likely to provide support. Try to keep your formations as concentrated as possible. As a result of major combat, units will lose strength points and become fatigued. They may even rout if the battle goes too badly against them. Rout is a general term used here to cover a number of different states. Essentially it means units unable to undertake organised activities within the normal military framework. For any given combat state, the higher the experience of a unit the less likely it is to rout, and the quicker it is to recover. Elite troops are very hard to shift and reorganise very quickly. Routing units are readily identified on the screen by their distinctive icons. The supply, and to a lesser extent, the admin values of the junior HQ are reduced in proportion to the intensity of the battle. In addition, each side may have a brittleness level set when the scenario was created. If a formation has been flagged as brittle and its losses are greater than or equal to the brittleness level then its supply and admin values will be zeroed and the units themselves will suffer attrition. This is to simulate the total loss of higher organisation, even though the men may still be in the field. Naturally units in this condition are more likely to rout. Even if a brittleness level is set, not every formation need be brittle. A brittle formation will have the brittleness level indicated to the right of the leadership factor in Menu 14. If the casualty level below it equals or exceeds the brittleness factor you are in trouble. A brittle senior HQ affects senior HQ supply, admin and assets. A brittle junior HQ affects junior HQ supply, admin and all component units. Whenever a junior HQ executes an attack order you will receive a report providing you with the details. Losses will be specified as Light, Medium or Heavy. This represents the strength point loss as a proportion of current strength and is thus a relative measurement. Attackers losses are calculated on the total strength of all attackers. The combat report also shows the orders for attacker and defender and if OBS is allocated it is described as Light, Medium or Heavy (LT, MED, HVY). Fatigue losses are not shown in the combat report but you should check on them through the various status reports. You must hit the space bar to proceed. IBM users should note the following changes. The combat display has been extensively revised. Icons show the nationality of the combatants and the levels of off-board support added. Casualties are shown by icons with a triple 'death's head' icon informing you that the luckless unit in question has been KIA'd. The following features are available with our new "full-map" graphics. The defending unit is identified by the target icon while all attacking units are shown, even those not able to contribute to the fight. Units highlighted with black/red marching ants are taking part in the battle. Units highlighted with black/purple marching ants are too far away to take part in the battle. Units highlighted with black/bluish marching ants are too exhausted and/or feeble to take part in the battle. (b). Minor Combat. In addition to the battles displayed in the combat reports referred to above, all other opposing units adjacent to each other are subject to the minor combat routine. The results of this routine are not displayed on the screen. Units may suffer fatigue and/or strength point losses as a result of minor combat. Minor combat ignores the presence of OBS points. For IBM users, all units suffering at least 1 SP loss from minor combat are sequentially identified by black/yellow marching ants. The higher the experience level of a unit, the more damage it can cause and the less it takes from minor combat. Adverse factors for minor combat are lack of supply, high fatigue and high numbers of adjacent enemy units. Minor combat does not occur at night, unless a side been flagged as night capable. Night capable units meeting the normal minor combat conditions will conduct minor combat at night. This simulates aggressive night patrolling and combat. In all other respects they are identical to normal units. Night capability is indicated under the reports menu. (c). Mines and Forts. Mines and forts affect both movement and combat. A unit moving onto an enemy minefield or fort cannot move any further that turn. Minefields and forts are automatically cleared at the end of turn, unless the unit conducts or is the target of a major combat, in which case it has a 50% chance of clearing the minefield or fort. Even if a fort or minefield is cleared in one turn, the unit's movement allowance for the next turn is zeroed. A unit on an uncleared mine or fort hex blocks movement through that hex. An enemy fort or minefield will not be removed unless it is cleared by a friendly unit. Until it is cleared, an enemy fort or minefield hex will remain enemy controlled. Minefields (but not forts) cause losses in strength and fatigue, and will continue to cause these losses until cleared. In any turn, a unit on an enemy fort or minefield is also very vulnerable to minor combat, and incapable of inflicting minor combat losses on the enemy. Friendly minefields have no effect. Friendly forts use the combat effects defined for them in the construction kit. In a major combat against a fort, any engineer units (only) treat the terrain as being combat effectiveness 7; i.e. the easiest terrain for combat. Routed units cannot clear minefields nor do they suffer any extra penalties for being in a minefield. Any enemy minefield or fort hexes occupied but not cleared are automatically cleared at the end of the game. This means you will receive victory points for those hexes. These routines mean undefended minefields or forts slow movement without doing much damage. Defended minefields, or worse still, minefields with defended forts behind them can cause a lot of grief. (d). Special Units. These are units showing the parachute, glider or landing craft icon. While showing this icon, parachute or glider units are especially vulnerable to minor combat. They only show the icon on the first turn that they land. Landing craft will suffer special attrition if there was space for them to land at the beginning of the turn and there was an enemy unit within two hexes. If there was no space they are deemed to be keeping a prudent distance off-shore until such a space arises. 6. THE MOVEMENT ROUTINES Once the last combat report has been displayed, the movement routines are activated. The computer determines in which order the regiments will move. This is based on admin, experience, supply, leadership, current order and a small random component. If necessary, the movement routine will be divided into a series of pulses. This is to ensure that no single unit moves more than 4 hexes (or 8 along a road) before every unit has had a chance to execute its order. Objectives may have been allocated to a particular senior HQ during the creation process. A computer controlled force will attempt to take or re-take those objectives with the specified senior HQ. A human player can naturally issue any orders he wishes. However, if an enemy unit is KIA'd, your units will move after combat towards a senior HQ objective, if one exists. Therefore you should either co-operate with the computer or remove the senior HQ objective allocation from the data base by using WarPlan. The current senior HQ objec tives will be listed on the bottom left of the screen under the reports menu. The menu window will display the word throughout the duration of the movement routines. The screen will centre on each unit as it moves. Once all movement is complete, the turn is over and the next turn will begin. 7. WINNING THE GAME The game will end with the completion of the movement routine on the last turn. It is always a pm turn. The victory screen will appear and summarise the players' performance. 8. TACTICS Some parts of the game are so vital to playing it properly that they need to be specified in one place rather than scattered throughout the menu explanations. They are combat and supply. (a) Combat. There are many factors in the game that are considered in the resolution of combat. The most important of these are the fatigue state, casualty level, and supply state of the troops. Deficiencies in any one of these areas can make a serious difference to combat performance. These are variables that are immediately affected by your command decisions and deserve your closest attention. Tired or exhausted men cannot fight effectively. A combat result can cause loss of strength, fatigue or both. Thus men can lose fatigue points in combat in both attack and defence. Each attack can cost fatigue points and repeated assaults without a break will cause extra fatigue and supply losses. Fatigue is recovered best at night by sleeping, and attacking at night will certainly cause fatigue losses and should only be done where really necessary. There are, however, some good reasons for attacking at night. These would include having large amounts of off-board support, the fact that your opponents air p ower makes attacking during the day very difficult, or having so many men that you can afford to have some attack at night to keep up constant pressure on the enemy. The main point is that troops fighting both day and night will rapidly become exhausted. Night capable troops will conduct minor combat at night without fatigue loss. Moreover, any OBS allocated to them for a major combat automatically arrives as it does during the day. Non-night capable units have only a 50% chance of receiving allocated OBS. Night capable units still receive normal fatigue penalties for major combat at night. Junior HQs in reserve will recover fatigue much faster than those in any other state and tired units should be placed in reserve to allow more rapid recovery. Attacking with units that are tired or exhausted invites disaster. Units lose effectiveness as their casualty level mounts, over and above the actual loss of strength points. Any unit with over 20% casualties is a definite candidate for reserv e, and units with over 50%, even if they remain on the battlefield, are not very useful. If units are brittle you must try to keep casualties below the brittleness level. Brittle units will never recover and will eventually die of attrition, even if they are not in combat. Casualty levels are not the absolute totals of killed and wounded. Rather they reflect the steady lowering of the number of men willing and able to fight effectively against the enemy. Most of the casualties will not be hurt at all but are out of contact, cut off, confused or leaderless, pinned down or otherwise ineffective. Putting such a formation in reserve will allow re-organisation and replacement and will eventually restore it to a reasonable fighting condition. A unit committed to battle and taking too many casualties may break and rout. A routed unit is no longer effective as a fighting force and will usually retreat towards its senior HQ. Routed units can be targeted for major combat if no other enemy units are in range and in any case will suffer extra losses if adjacent to enemy units at the end of a turn. Any unit suffering overwhelming casualties may cease to exist for game purposes. It is noted as KIA and disappears from the game. (b). Supply. The toughest unit is helpless without bullets and useless without food. The junior HQ supply level is used for combat purposes. Its likelihood of replenishment is related to its current order (reserve is best, assault is worst), the senior HQ supply value and both HQs' admin values. The senior HQ supply and admin values do not change! If these are low you have to be extra careful in selecting an attack philosophy. Although a junior HQ may start with decent supplies, resupply will be a chancy procedure. Naturally, attacks use a lot of supply, so avoid unnecessary combat. Even if senior HQ supply is good, each junior HQ must trace a line of friendly controlled hexes to the senior HQ to establish resupply. You will be told if the LOS is open or cut. If it is cut, you may have to move your junior HQ formation or your senior HQ or both. Placement of the senior HQ is critical. As a special concession to amphibious operations, junior HQs can trace supply to senior HQs located off-shore; i.e. showing the special landing craft icon. Once the senior HQ has landed the normal rules apply. Terrain prohibited to mech units and the presence of enemy units may also block supply. If your LOS is blocked you cannot afford to wait too long before unblocking it. (c). Management. There is no such thing as a lucky turn. A good technique can overcome most reverses. Bad play turns reverse into disaster. A few principles to help you avoid disaster are set out below. Keep a reserve. Your senior HQ has to be about 6 hexes away from the enemy to make this possible. If you don't have that room, fight like crazy to create it. Don't commit your reserve until you have made provision for a replacement. Use the right men for the job. Historically, the best formations got more than their share of tough jobs, for very good reasons. You will find those reasons equally compelling. Give the right job to the men. Even inferior troops who are strategically on the defensive can and should attack, at least occasionally. Judicious use of probes will cause extra fatigue and supply losses to the attackers. They will probably win anyway but be in worse shape after the victory than if a purely passive defence had been maintained. If your probe catches an attacker during a prepare he will certainly suffer. Manage your assets. In one sense all your troops are assets and your job is to use them correctly. The senior HQ assets provide a useful illustration of this. They should be checked every turn to ensure that they are being used in the most efficient manner possible. The techniques for managing them successfully apply to the rest of your troops. Apply those consistently and you'll be hard to beat. -------------------------------------------------------------------- WARPLAN Strategic Studies Group (SSG) -------------------------------------------------------------------- 1. INTRODUCTION The following notes are meant as a guide to WarPlan. The information they contain will also provide some insights into how the game works, and should be read at some stage even if you never construct your own scenarios. Varying an existing scenario is fairly straight-forward and the easiest way to get the most out of your game. All of the scenarios in the game come with suggested variations which can be easily implemented. However, designing a full scenario will require a reasonable degree of familiarity with the game itself. All games in the Battlefront Game System use the same design routines. We publish complete scenarios for the Battlefront Game System in our magazine Run 5. These contain all the information required to create complete new games using the construction kit. For details on our Run 5 magazine, please see the enclosed mailing card. design routines. We publish complete scenarios for the Battlefront Game System in our magazine Run 5. These contain all the information req uired to create complete new games using the construction kit. For details on our Run 5 magazine, please see the enclosed mailing card. 2. USING THE DESIGN MENUS The data card contains a schematic display of the design menus. They operate in the same way as the Game Menus that you have already used. There is no distinction for editing purposes between a scenario and a game in progress. A game can be saved to disk, edited as you see fit and then restarted. This is a feature to be used with restraint. While you can change sides with the computer, for instance, it will generally take until the end of the next game turn for the computer to readjust. 3. PREPARING A DISK Whether making a variation to an historical scenario or creating an original scenario, the procedure for preparing a save game disk is essentially the same. Examine the Start and Design menus. If you have not formatted a save game disk, prepare one using the procedure given in section 1 of Chapter 4 of the Game Routines. When making a change to an historical scenario, select the line from Menu A and type (RET) to obtain Menu B. If the template which is providing the source for the variation is on a scenario disk, select the line and type (RET). Select the chosen scenario from Menu C. The computer will automatically process you through to Menu J (Create Master). If the template which is providing the source for the variation is on a save game disk, select the line and type (RET). Load the chosen file from Menu D. The computer will automatically process you through to Menu J (Create Master). Use WarPlan and WarPaint to make whatever changes you wish to the data and then come back to Menu J. Select the line to go to Menu D. Select the line. Locate the desired save location in the catalog with the arrow keys and then type (RET). You will be offered an opportunity to enter a comment. Use it if you wish, otherwise select the line and type (RET). IBM users can store scenario and save games in the same catalog. Therefore, there is no Menu D in the IBM routines. When you wish to create your own scenario, repeat the above procedure but before entering data use the line in Menu J to erase the data bases. 4. THE WARPLAN DESIGN MENUS This section describes the various menus in WarPlan together with explanations of their functions. The order in which they are presented represents a convenient sequence for the creation of a new scenario. 4.1 MAP 4.11 Map Size/Data (Menu 8) The map size is variable. Each map element is 13 hexes wide by 7 hexes deep. There may be up to three elements across and four down. Thus, the maximum size of a battlefield is 39 by 28 hexes. At a suggested ground scale of 1 kilometre per hex, this represents an area of a little over 1,000 square kilometres. In creating a scenario, map size must be set before anything else. Select the smallest map size that can comfortably support the action you wish to represent. Apart from being less work, smaller maps will mean faster games. IBM users can make several additional entries in this menu. The Axis and Allied forces can be identified with a 9 character name. This will replace the / lines in the game menus. The colour of roads, rivers, the coast-line, the cursor and the map edge can be changed to any of the colours in the palette at the bottom of the screen. Only rivers and the map-edge can be edited when using "full-map" graphics. 4.12 Define Terrain (Menu 7) There are sixteen terrain shapes. The shapes are completely editable with WarPaint. The names and the effects on both combat and movement for any terrain shape can be defined for each terrain type. It is possible to represent the ground conditions of any battlefield by judicious use of names and combat/movement effects. Use the (RET) key to advance the cursor through the screen. Examine any (or all) of the game scenarios and the blank design form in Appendix A. For each terrain shape you wish to use, enter a 1-10 character name. IBM users can enter a 1-11 character name. Every unit in the game is assigned a movement allowance in the Troop Creation routines. The movement section of this display is used to determine how many movement points each type of terrain will cost when that unit enters a hex of that type. Mechanised units are those primarily moved by tracked or wheeled vehicles. Non-mechanised units primarily move on foot (or horse). Enter a number between 0 and 31. Note that 0 si gnifies the hex is impassable to that type of unit and will appear on the screen as a dotted line. The terrain symbol on the top of the screen corresponds to the line currently being edited by the cursor. Terrain affects combat by reducing the effectiveness with which an enemy unit will attack a particular hex type. Since armoured, artillery and infantry units play a different role in combat, there is a separate effect for each type. Enter a value between 0 and 7. A value of 7 means that the terrain has no adverse effect on combat. A value of 0 means an incredibly tough position to assault. 4.13 Define Misc Factors (Menu 6) There are 3 components to this screen. Examine any (or all) of the game scenarios and the blank design form in Appendix A. 1. Roads, Forts, Bridges, Rivers and Cities must have their movement and combat effects defined in the same way as terrain types. Note that forts and cities cannot affect movement and roads cannot affect combat. Mechanised units cannot cross rivers except at bridges. Notice how forts, as defined, can severely reduce the combat effectiveness of all three troop types. 2. Every hex on the map is controlled either by the Axis or Allied player. This is set when the scenario is created. Control then changes when a unit enters an enemy controlled hex. This change is automatic except for enemy forts, cities and minefields. They take a variable amount of time to demolish/clear and until rendered ineffective they will function as normal for their original owners. In essence, you do not really control a fort or minefield hex until you have cleared that hex. Hexes occupied but uncleared at the end of the game are automatically cleared and will earn victory points. Progress is always slower when moving in enemy territory. Just how much slower is determined by the values entered for adjacent enemy controlled hexes. The parameters from (1) to (6) are the number of surrounding hexes which are enemy controlled. The values underneath each parameter which may range from 0 to 15 specify the movement point penalty for entering a hex surrounded by any particular number of enemy hexes. Note that the penalty is specified for each side. Thus the line specifies the penalties for Axis units in Allied controlled hexes and vice versa. 3. The size of a unit is measured in strength points as described in the Troop Creation routines. Each player receives victory points for destroying enemy unit strength points. A value between 0 and 15 must be entered for both the mech and non-mech categories. The AXIS line reflects the number of VPs earned by the Allies for killing Axis strength points in each category. 4.14 Map Create Utility (Menu 9) It's probably a good idea to make a draft version of your battlefield before completing the rest of the map data. However, we strongly advise you not to edit the map screen until all the information in Menus 6-8 has been compiled and entered into the program. A 13 hex by 7 hex section of the map will appear with a flashing cursor. In the bottom left of the screen you will find the hex co-ordinate of the cursor's current location. The middle section contains the terrain name and the icons applicable to the current hex, as they appear in the map walk routines. If the hex has been defined as an objective the name appears at the bottom of this section. There is a schematic display of the map in the lower right which indicates the map size and the current location of the cursor in relation to the full map. There are 16 terrain types which can be entered. River and bridge hex-sides can be entered. Roads, cities, forts and minefields can be added to a hex in any combination. Every hex must be identified as Axis or Allied controlled. The I,J,K,M and 1-6 keys will move the cursor around the chosen battlefield. 0 will centre the screen on the cursor. IBM users can use the f1-f10 keys to move from one 13 x 7 section of the map to another; f1 corresponds to the top left sector, f2 to the top centre sector, etc. To create a terrain type in a hex, type (T)(n) where n = a number between 0 and 15. Please see the blank terrain effects chart in Appendix A. Note that the second terrain type requires you to type (T) (1) (RET). This is to distinguish it from terrain types T10-T15. IBM users must type T(n)(RET) for all terrain types. IBM users can use the + and - keys to change the terrain type to the next higher or lower type. To add a road, city, fort or minefield to the hex, type (R), (C), (F) or (X) while the cursor is over the hex. Type the same letter to remove the feature. IBM users can type (E) or (H) to add ersatz (phoney) or hidden roads to a hex. An ersatz road is not treated by the computer as a road for movement calculations. They should be used to stop the computer becoming confused by dead-ends. A hidden road will be masked from view by the terrain type in the hex. Use hidden roads where no real road exists but you wish to create a channel for troop movement. Another use is when the terrain type is particularly significant or unique and you wish it to be displayed. A unit travelling on an ersatz road will pay road movement costs. A unit travelling on a hidden road will pay normal terrain costs. To create a river hex-side, Apple II/C64 users must type three keys. The first is (S). This identifies a hex-side. The second is a number between 1 and 3. This identifies north, north-eastern and south-eastern hex-sides respectively. Note that the south hex-side of one hex is the north hex-side of the hex directly below it. In this way, all 6 hex-sides can be edited. The third is a number between 1 and 2. (1) identifies a river. (2) identifies a bridge. Type (S0) to clear all hex-sides from a particular hex. IBM users must follow a slightly different procedure. Type (S) (n) to signal you wish to edit a particular hex-side. If n = 0, all hex-sides will be cleared. If n = 1- 3, you have chosen to edit the north, north-eastern and south-eastern hex-sides respectively. Note that the south hex-side of one hex is the north hex-side of the hex directly below it. In this way, all 6 hex-sides can be edited. Now type another number from 0-3. 0 = null hex-side. 1 = river hex-side. 2 = bridge hex-side. 3 = road suppression hex-side (this means that the two hexes separated by the hex-side will not display a road link. To set control of a hex to Axis or Allied, Apple II/C64 users must type (RET) to bring up the map menu and select . Select or as appropriate. The map menu for IBM users allows you to select either or . All hexes, except T0s, will have their terrain icon replaced by the Axis or Allied control i con. As the cursor moves, it will leave a trail of the appropriate control icons behind it. To change control, type (RET) to bring up the map menu and select . You are back at square one and can repeat the procedure using the other control icon. When editing hex control from scratch, the default value is Axis. For convenience, you can set the cursor to automatically produce a terrain shape. With the cursor flashing on the chosen terrain, type (RET). This brings up the map menu in the bottom right of the screen. Selecting from this menu will lock the current terrain shape to the cursor. You may now move the cursor and the selected shape will be created wherever the cursor is moved. Type (RET) again to go back to the menu and select to turn off the shape. We suggest you keep the map size as small as possible for your first original scenario. All maps are compromises between the actuality of the terrain and its representation. Do not feel afraid to be cr eative with terrain to make the map work properly within the game system. Important Note for IBM Users. If your IBM supports an EGA or VGA card and you have a colour monitor, you will be able to use our "full-map" graphics. There are a few changes you need to be aware of when you are building a new map. There are up to 250 full map icons which can be used to create the map. However, there are still only 15 different terrain types. In other words, the new graphics are purely an overlay covering the basic terrain shapes. What you must do is first create a map using the basic graphics (i.e. go to DOS and re-enter the program, disabling the "full-map" graphics). Build up the map using the standard graphics and save as normal. Return to DOS and restart with the "full-map" graphics enabled. You can now go to the WarPaint routines and prepare brilliant, 16 colour terrain shapes and unit icons. These icons are stored in a .lbm file and are DPAINT2 (c Electronic Arts) compatible. Note that when you place these full-map hexes on the map, the original terrain type and name will remain in the lower right of the screen. 4.2 UNIT DATA 4.21 Troop Creation (Menu 14) Examine the blank formation roster in Appendix A. One of these should be prepared for each senior HQ in the game. Do not attempt to edit the screen until these rosters have been completed. Armed with your completed roster, you can create the units in the formation. The following notes will explain the factors which must be valued or rated. A design perspective is attempted in the Design Overview at the end of this section. (a). HQs HQ I.D. Enter a 1-8 character name to identify the senior or junior HQ. UNIT TYPE. Enter a 1-8 character name to describe the HQ type. HQ ADMIN. Enter a value between 0 and 7. Admin affects the efficiency of every function the HQ carries out. The higher the value, the better. Senior HQ admin never varies in the course of a game. Junior HQ admin rises and falls in response to the current situation. LEADERSHIP. Enter a value between 0 and 7. Leadership is always important in battle. The higher the value, the better. Neither senior HQ leadership nor junior HQ leadership will change in the course of a game. Both are important to the effectiveness of a formation. HQ SUPPLY. Enter a value between 0 and 7. Senior HQ supply is fixed in each scenario and represents the overall supply status of the formation. Junior HQ supply usage is dependent upon combat while resupply is dependent upon the senior HQ supply value. The more fighting, especially assaulting or exploiting, that a unit does the greater the supply consumption. An adequate junior HQ supply level is vital for effective combat. Values between 4 and 7 are satisfactory for all purposes, values of 2 or 3 will result in certain penalties in combat while values of 0 or 1 are disastrous. Thus a unit with very low senior HQ supply value will be severely restricted in the amount of effective combat it can undertake. BRITTLE. Enter a value of 1 if the HQ is brittle. Brittleness is a factor for senior and/or junior HQs. A unit suffers the effects of brittleness only if its parent HQ is designated as brittle and its casualty figure reaches the brittleness level set in the scenario briefing. Once this happens then the senior and/or junior HQ supply and admin values are set to zero and attached units suffer attrition each turn. For senior HQs, the affected units are the assets, while for junior HQs they are the regular units of that formation. HQ MOVEMENT. Enter a value between 0 and 31. Regular HQs with the usual provision of wheeled or horse-drawn vehicles should be given a movement allowance at least equal to the mech. min. value, even if they are basically leg infantry formations. Only those formations such as airborne and marine which arrive by an air or amphibious route should have a movement allowance lower than the mech. min. Resupply by senior HQs with a movement allowance lower than the mech. min. will not be as good as their conventional brethren in most circumstances. Resupply across rivers (except at bridges) is less restricted for senior HQs with a movement allowance lower than the mech. min. If a unit was tied to a single supply source (such as Airborne formations and their drop zones), consideration should be given to using a zero movement point HQ to reflect this. ARRIVAL (SENIOR HQ ONLY). Enter a number between 0 and 99. This is the turn that the senior HQ will arrive on the map. An arrival number of 0 means the HQ will begin the game deployed on the map. Units without a senior HQ will have no line of supply. Delaying the arrival of a HQ beyond that of its units is a very useful way of restricting the operations of units until an appropriate time. LOCATION (SENIOR HQ ONLY). Enter the x, y map co-ordinates of the HQs start or arrival hex. (b). Units UNIT I.D. Enter a 1-3 character name to identify the unit. LOCATION. Enter the x, y map co-ordinates of the unit's start or arrival hex. Note that amphibious reinforcements must be given an ocean hex adjacent to the intended beach-head. Do not place two units in the same hex unless they have different arrival turns. An exception to this is the placement of a string of reinforcements all arriving on the same map-edge hex on the same turn. The computer will handle this satisfactorily. CLASS. Enter a number between 0 and 13. These 14 numbers correspond to the fourteen different types of units you may create. The types are; 0 = leg infantry, 1= motorised infantry, 2 = mechanised infantry, 3 = paratroopers (airborne infantry), 4 = heavy weapons or mortars, 5 = cavalry, 6 = reconnaissance, 7 = engineer, 8 = anti-air, 9 = anti-tank, 10 = tank destroyer, 11 = armour, 12 = assault gun, 13 = artillery. Numbers 0,1 and 3-9 are INFantry types, 2 and 10-12 are ARMour types and 13 is an ARTillery type. These are the three types of units defined by the combat routines. MODE. Enter a number between 0 and 3. This number determines the mode of entry of a unit. 0 = normal; the unit begins on the board or arrives as a reinforcement in the normal fashion. 1 = airborne; the unit begins the game just landed by air drop or arrives as a reinforcement by air drop. 2 = air landing; the unit begins the game just landed by air transport or arrives as a reinforcement by air transport. 3 = amphibious; the unit begins the game at sea adjacent to a beach-head or arrives as a reinforcement in an ocean hex. Units in normal mode will start or arrive on their designated entry hex. If it is blocked by another unit, they will not arrive until the hex is vacated. Units in parachute mode will arrive on any hex within 1 hex of their designated entry hex. If there is no vacant hex inside this radius, they are destroyed. Units in air landing mode will start or arrive on their designated entry hex. If it is blocked by another unit, they will not arrive until the hex is vacated. Units in amphibious mode will arrive on any coastal hex within 2 hexes of their designated entry hex. If there is no vacant hex inside this radius, they will wait off-shore until there is one. EQUIPMENT. In Menu 15 you are asked to describe, with a 1- 8 character name, the types of equipment/troops used by your force. This facility makes the identification of friendly units much easier. The name itself is not used by the program; it is simply a mechanism to increase the recognition level of a unit. There is space to list 31 items of equipment and/or troop types. Number 0 is always blank. Enter the number corresponding to the appropriate equipment. Once you've had some experience with these routines, we recommend you prepare Menu 15 before Menu 14. MOVEMENT. Enter a number between 0 and 31. This is the number of movement points the unit will have available for each turn. Note that you must co-ordinate this number with the mechanised minimum value from Menu 19 (Scenario Details). All units with a movement allowance greater than or equal to the chosen mechanised minimum value will be treated as mechanised units; all others will be treated as non-mechanised. ARRIVAL. Enter a number between 0 and 99. This is the turn that the unit will arrive on the map. An arrival number of 0 means the unit begins the game deployed on the map. MAXIMUM STRENGTH. Enter a number between 1 and 15. This is the maximum strength of the unit. In a scenario with battalion-size units, a good approximation of strength can be found by assigning 3 strength points (SPs) for each full strength company, 2 SPs for a depleted company and 1 SP for remnants. For artillery battalions, 3 tubes is equal to 1 SP. If the unit scale is larger (i.e. regiment or division), a different rating system must be used. Look to the scenarios included with this game or to our Run 5 magazine for detailed examples. CURRENT STRENGTH. This must be less than or equal to the initial strength. For various reasons it is often desirable to start a unit under-strength. This allows you to do just that. The normal game processes for replacements will tend to bring a unit's strength back to its maximum strength. RATING. Enter a number between 0 and 15. This number is a subjective evaluation of the quality of the equipment and organisation of the unit. For example, the rating of a tiger tank battalion would be 12-15 depending on the scenario while a Matilda tank would be lucky to rate 1 in any circumstances. Infantry, armour and artillery type units should be rated on separate scales. The combat mechanics take care of the inter-relationships. If you don't like the ratings of your favourite hardware or unit, change them. RANGE. All direct attack types of infantry units should have a range of 0. All supporting types of infantry units should have a range of 1. All armour type units (except mechanised infantry) should have a range of 1. All artillery type units should have a range equal to the effective distance at which they could engage the enemy. The maximum range is 15. FATIGUE. Enter a number between 0 and 7. 0 = totally exhausted, 7 = bright-eyed and bushy-tailed. EXPERIENCE. Enter a number between 0 and 7. 0 = green and pretty well useless, 7 = elite troops of the highest quality. The average regular unit should have an experience between 3 and 5. ATTACHMENT (ASSETS ONLY). Enter a number between 0 and 4. This number will identify which junior HQ has currently been assigned the particular asset. A value of 0 indicates that the asset is in reserve. Note that all assets which are intended as reinforcements should be assigned to a junior HQ when created and not placed in reserve. This will stop them from clogging up a reinforcement hex while they get their bearings. 4.22 Equipment Roster (Menu 15) The use of this menu has already been explained in the previous section. 4.23 Axis/Allied Objectives (Menu 16) Axis and Allied objectives are created in the same way. Examine the blank objective chart in Appendix A. Each side may have a maximum of 12 objectives. The and lines in the menu window are used to bring up the next objective. The line is used to enter the objective and set its parameters. The line is an alternative method of positioning the objective on the map. Each objective must be given a 1-11 character name and an x, y map location. Apple II/C64 users must make sure that there is a character in the first space of the objective name; otherwise the objective will not appear in the game. IBM users must assign at least 1 VP to the objective if they wish it to appear in the game. An objective may have a senior HQ, numbered 1 to 3, assigned to it. If a side is computer controlled, the computer will attempt to take an objective with a junior HQ from the nominated senior HQ. This junior HQ will be assigned assets and will head for the objective at every oppor tunity. If a number of objectives are given to one senior HQ it will attempt the closest and work its way through the others as they arise. In this way a line of advance may be specified for a senior HQ. This control is only valid for the turns that an objective is earning points. If an objective is in friendly territory, i.e. already controlled, then it is ignored and the senior HQ will seek enemy controlled objectives or follow the normal rules. However, if such an objective is taken by the enemy, then the computer will make a concerted effort to recapture it. In addition, objectives which have a senior HQ assigned to them may be designated as defensive objectives. Only the specified senior HQ will be affected by this condition and it operates only while the objective is under friendly control. A junior HQ from the specified senior HQ will be despatched to the objective and will defend it as long as the time window applies. The ability to control troops conferred by the use of object ives is very important. Scenario creators have a lot of power at their disposal. Victory points can be awarded for the possession of an objective on a turn by turn basis throughout the game and/or at the end of the game. When awarding points throughout the game, you must select the turn that point scoring will begin and the turn on which it will end. If you wish to create an objective simply as a signpost for the direction of your troops, assign just 1 VP for its occupation at the end of the game. The Objective or Enemy commands are the only way to move men freely around the map. If you want troops to be able to go somewhere, put in an objective. 4.3 BRIEFING 4.31 Scenario Details (Menu 18) The blank briefing form in Appendix A illustrates this routine. Enter a 1-16 character name for the scenario. There are up to three 26 character lines you can use for a sub-title to the scenario. Enter the turn, day, month, year and century that the scenario begins. Enter the number of days the scenario will last. The maximum is 25. Every game ends on a pm turn. Enter the initial weather. 0 = precipitation (rain or snow as appropriate), 1 = heavy overcast, 2 = light overcast, 3 = clear. Note that this is atmospheric weather only. To reflect the effect of mud or snow on ground movement, you must make appropriate provision in the terrain effects routine. Enter the current weather forecast. 0,1 = stormy, 2,3 = building, 4,5 = stable, 6,7 = clearing. Enter the climate. This sets the basic parameters on which the weather forecast will operate to produce the weather. The default type 0 is European. The other climates are Arid, (suitable for desert battles), Monsoon, Tropical, Arctic (clear o nly 25% of the time, cloudy or precipitation the rest) and Temperate (perfect weather, just like Sydney). Enter the Mech Min. All units with a movement allowance greater than or equal to this number pay mechanised terrain costs. All others use the non-mechanised values. Enter the separate casualty levels at which HQs of each side become brittle (if so designated). These are percentage casualties in increments of 10%. Enter for each side whether it is night capable. Night capable units conduct minor combat at night and always receive their allocated OBS points. 4.32 Force- Details (Menu 19) Examine the blank briefing form in Appendix A as well as any of the scenarios. For each nationality you must enter a 1-16 character name for the Side, the Force and the Commander. Support points are assigned in two categories; those available in daylight turns and those available at night. Each point of air support is equivalent to 1 SP of artillery. Reliability measures how likely the support points are to be available for use each turn. 0 = unlikely, 3 = almost certain. Rating is a measure of the effectiveness of the support. Sixteen inch naval shells deserve the highest rating, 25 lb WWI surplus bombs the lowest. Air superiority is measured on a scale of 0-7. 0 = strong Axis, 7 = strong Allied. Reliability measures how likely this air superiority is to remain throughout the scenario. A low reliability means the air superiority condition could fluctuate frequently throughout the scenario. A reliability of 7 means there is little chance of any change to the air superiority condition. IBM users should note that a reliability of 0 means there is no air-power effect in the game. 4.33 Minor Combat Effects (Menu 20) IBM Users Only This menu allows you to increase or decrease the effectiveness of minor combat in various situations. (a). Fort Enhancement. Troops defending a fortification can be made tougher or weaker by changing the minor combat value. Enter a value between 0 and 15. Increase the value to toughen the unit. Decrease the value to weaken the unit. The default value is 2. (b). City Enhancement. Troops defending a city can be made tougher or weaker by changing the minor combat value. Enter a value between 0 and 15. Increase the value to toughen the unit. Decrease the value to weaken the unit. The default value is 0. (c). General Enhancement. Troops defending in other terrain can be made tougher or weaker by changing the minor combat value. Enter a value between 0 and 15. Increase the value to toughen the unit. Decrease the value to weaken the unit. The default value is 5. 4.4 A DESIGN OVERVIEW (a). Units. The process of creating a scenario should be regarded as an art rather than a science. While some armies came close to fighting with a homogeneous organisation, a lot did not. The circumstances of war usually bear little relation to paper organisations. Do not be afraid to combine units and manipulate strengths and ratings to get the desired affect. A scenario is much more than the sum of its parts. (b). Scale. The system works well with basic unit sizes ranging from battalion to division. The best results are obtained when all units in a scenario are approximately the same organisational size. Exceptions to this generalisation are fairly common, as can be seen in the Panzer Battles game or many of the scenarios appearing in Run 5. (c). Combat. The various unit types, as defined by the CLASS entry, have different effects in the combat routines. Choice of the CLASS for a unit should bear these in mind. The types are listed below. 0 = leg infantry, 1 = motorised infantry, 2 = mechanised infantry, 3 = paratroopers (airborne infantry), 4 = heavy weapons or mortars, 5 = cavalry, 6 = reconnaissance, 7 = engineer, 8 = anti-air, 9 = anti-tank, 10 = tank destroyer, 11 = armour, 12 = assault gun, 13 = artillery. Numbers 0,1 and 3-9 are INFantry types, 2 and 10-12 are ARMour types and 13 is an ARTillery type. Any combat having both the INF types 0-3,5-7 and ARM types 11-12 gains a combined arms bonus. When defending, there is an additional bonus for the presence of an anti-tank type unit (8-10). Any unit with a range greater than zero gains a bonus when used in conjunction with a 0 range unit. For example, a US infantry regiment usually mustered three infantry battalions and an artillery battalion. The heavy weapons and mortars were in separate companies organic to the infantry battalions. To represent the supporting fire of these companies, enter a range value of 1 for one of the infantry battalions. This will ensure that the combined arms bonus is realised. Note that the artillery bonus is in addition to the above. The presence of ART or OBS also confers a bonus, irrespective of the actual effectiveness of those points. ART and OBS points work with full effectiveness only in or . All other orders are only 50% effective. Engineer units ignore terrain when they attack, and are hence extremely useful for attacking forts. 5. WARPAINT WarPaint is entirely new to wargame construction. Even we are amazed at just how useful it is. Every icon in the game can be edited, including all unit and terrain icons. 5.1 WARPAINT (Menu 21) The line gives access to the icon editor. The and lines are used to install or extract a graphics set from any save game or scenario disk. To transfer the graphics from one scenario to another, you would execute the following steps. Load the source scenario, and use the line to load the graphics. Remove that disk and insert the destination disk. Load the destination scenario and use . The graphics that were in the source scenario are now in the destination scenario. Save the altered scenario and the change is permanent. The line gives IBM users access to the "full-map" graphic routines. 5.2 DESIGN GRAPHICS (Menu 22) The screen shows a large boxed section on the left. This shows a pixel by pixel representation of an icon. Below it the icon is shown in white and the allowable colours as it would look upon the screen. The icon number is shown above the menu box. The current selected colour is shown below the menu box. Selecting the line shows a flashing cursor in the top left of the icon box. The box is fourteen elements across by 16 elements down. The presence of a pixel is shown by a white square and ist absence by a white dash. The I, J, K, and M keys or the arrow keys are used to move the cursor around the icon box. At any location the (RET) key creates a pixel if none is present and removes it if one is. As you make changes in the large icon box these are reflected in the small icons at the bottom of the screen. The rules for manipulating the screen icons are a trifle complicated and may vary from computer to computer. They are explained in detail below. After using the edit function type (ESC) to leave. Apple II/C64 users will be asked to or their changes and must make this choice before returning to Menu 21. Choosing incorporates any changes you have made while returns the icon to its previous shape. IBM users have access to the function described below. The option allows you to change the selected colour of the icon. The and options allow you transfer an icon between different icon numbers, allowing easy variations. The option blanks the screen, and for IBM users, at the same time transfers the previous image to the clip location. The option restores the screen with the image currently in the clip location. 5.3 "FULL-MAP" GRAPHICS (Menus 23-25) These notes offer some suggestions for the use of the "full-map" graphics available to IBM users with EGA or VGA cards and a colour monitor. Users with EGA or VGA cards can access our enhanced graphics routines for the 250 icons which make up the different terrain shapes and the 60 odd icons which represent units and other functions. The cumbersome and lines from the standard graphic routines have been replaced by a 'Clip' feature. Whenever you edit a shape, the original shape is transferred to the 'clip' window. To restore the original shape, select from the menu window. The enhanced graphics routines have a number of additional features. Select to bring up the enhanced graphic menu. will take you into the icon image. Use the arrow keys to locate the pixel you wish to edit. Use the Tab/Shift Tab keys to select a colour from the palette at the bottom of the screen. Type to set the drag key. This will trail the chosen colour after the cursor. Ty pe again to turn off the drag feature. will show you what your terrain shape will look like on a full screen. allows you to change a particular colour to another. Select and then use the arrow keys to locate on the terrain shape the colour you wish to change. Now hit (ENTER) and use the arrow/tab keys to locate from the palette the colour you wish to substitute. shunts the terrain shape in the direction specified by the chosen arrow key. Use this feature to vary a particular terrain shape. will flip the shape horizontally. will flip the shape vertically. will bring in the corresponding terrain shape from the standard graphic routines. The f1-f8 and Alt f1-f8 keys will select a particular colour. The f9 key will select the colour under the cursor. Tab/Shift Tab and +/- will select the next colour in either direction. A little familiarity with these routines will teach you all you need to know. 5.4 TECHNICAL NOTES There are blank layout sheets for graphic design for both the Apple II family, the C64/IBM (CGA) and the IBM (EGA) in Appendix A. Make photocopies of them or draw up something similar; they are an essential aid to graphic design. (a). Apple II Users. Welcome to the wonderful world of colour mixing. There are a number of restrictions in the Apple graphics as some random experimentation will make obvious. Vertical white lines must be at least two pixels wide, otherwise they turn out either orange or blue. Depending on which column they are in, vertical lines one pixel wide can appear in two colours and are invisible in the other two. Essentially, any shape that looks good in both white and a colour must be multiples of two pixels across, unless you like the weird colour mixing you get by defying this rule. Some icons are designed to be used only in white and so can ignore the weird colour effects. Since the colour of a dot can change depending on exactly where on the screen it happens to be located, designing non white icons also demands care. Continuing icons to the edges can cause colour mixing problems, especially at the corners. (b). C-64/128 Users. The Commodore does not have the restrictions of the Apple with regard to pixel combinations. However, the Commodore does have some colour mixing problems of its own, especially at the top and bottom of hexes. (c). IBM Users. IBM users have neither pixel nor colour-mixing problems! The CGA card has fewer colour choices than the EGA card. Note that Tandy CGA users have the same number of colour choices as an EGA user. (d). Icon Functions. All icons have a particular function. In the case of the terrain icons (numbers 0 to 15), the functions and the name are defined in the terrain menu. All other icons serve a particular purpose which does not change. If you edit an infantry unit icon to look like a tank, the system still treats it as an infantry unit. -------------------------------------------------------------------- PANZER BATTLES SCENARIOS Strategic Studies Group (SSG) -------------------------------------------------------------------- 1. GETTING THE GAME TO RUN System Requirements. This program requires an IBM PC/XT/AT or PS/2, a Tandy or other IBM compatible computer, with 512K of memory. The program supports the following graphics cards - EGA, CGA, MCGA, VGA, Hercules and uses the 16 colour version of Tandy CGA. The program disk does not include DOS and requires IBM/MS-DOS Version 2.1 or higher to run. 3.5" Disk Offer. If you need 3.5" disks for your system, please return the 5.25" disks to us together with $5.00 plus $2.50 for postage and packing. North American users should send their disks to our US Office, everyone else should use our Australian Office. System Set Up. The Set-Up menu allows you access to the user options in the game. It is not necessary to worry about it while you're learning the game. Use the arrow keys to locate the line and type (RET). Choosing will allow you to customise four options. Use the arrow keys to cycle through the options. Scrolling. The settings are 0-6. 0 = no scrolling; 1-6 = scrolling speed where 1 is slow and 6 is fast. The default setting is 3. CGA users have only one scroll speed (it doesn't matter which setting you choose). Type (RET) to cycle through the speed settings when the line is high-lighted. Type (ESC/DEL) to recover the menu window. DEL = ESC. The default settings in the game allow the DEL key to substitute for the ESC key. If you dislike this option, type (RET) to disable it. Sound. This toggles the sound effects in the game to `on' or `off'. Auto-Save. Setting this option to `on' will automatically save the game as soon as is selected. Only one file is maintained and it is overwritten each turn keeping the last turn always available. This file can be loaded using the command in the Save Game Utility. Choosing will save your choices to disk in a special file. Choosing will load the current options from that file, if it exists. The command sets the DOS path for all DOS operations like loading and saving files. It is restricted to 26 characters in length. When specifying drive names you must include the colon (:) as part of the path. Video Trouble Shooting. EGA and VGA systems will start up with our "full-map" graphic routines. Other graphic boards use our standard graphic routines. The program makes its best guess at your computer's video mode and should run. In the unlikely event that the program gets it wrong you can use a command line switch to force the program into the appropriate video mode. This takes the form (pz)(space)(n)(RET) where n is a single character c = CGA, e = EGA, t = Tandy, m = MCGA, h = Hercules, v = VGA and f = switch off "full-map" graphics. The only reason EGA/VGA users would have to switch off "full-map" graphics (and instead use standard graphics) is for rapid testing of original scenarios or the initial creation of an original game map as described in the WarPaint chapter of the Game Manual. DOS Details. In the real world of DOS, save game files are maintained with the name BF_nnn.BTG where nnn is a number between 001 and 050. Scenario files have the scenario name followed by a .BTS suffix. You can use normal DOS commands to delete or copy these files if necessary, but since you save over existing files it should not be necessary to use DOS often. In addition, the "full-map" graphic routines use an additional file with the same prefix as the game file and a .LBM suffix. Again, see the WarPaint chapter in the Game Manual. 2. LEARNING TO PLAY THE GAME By the beginning of December, 1941, most of the German Army Group Centre was poised within reach of the Soviet capital, Moscow. Autumn mud, and now winter snow, had reduced the German advance to a crawl and wreaked havoc with the supply network. Cold, tired and hungry, the German troops were ripe pickings for a Soviet offensive. And, unbeknownst to Germany, just such a force had been carefully built up, mostly from experienced troops recently withdrawn from the Far East. Part of this force was the Soviet 20th Army, under the command of General Vlasov. On December 4th, they struck at exposed elements of 4th Panzer Armee, some 40 km north-west of Moscow. It is at this point that the tutorial starts. You will assume command of Vlasov's troops and lead them to glory! Moscow is the second scenario in this booklet. Examine the situation map which accompanies the historical notes. You'll need to refer to it while you play through the tutorial. (a). Starting Up. Start up your computer using the procedure given in the preceding chapter. Menu A (Start Up Menu) appears to the right of the title page. As is the case with every menu in the game, you use the arrow keys to locate your choice from the menu and then type (RET) to select it. IBM users may alternatively use a function key to locate and select a menu item. The line in Menu A is the third line in the menu; therefore f3 will select it. Similarly, f4 will select the line. If you select the wrong menu, don't worry. Apple II and IBM users type (ESC) to go back to the previous menu; C64/128 users type (f1). IBM and Apple II users note that the (DEL) key will also serve as an (ESC) key in most situations. (b). Selecting the Moscow Scenario. Before we can start play, we have to select the Moscow scenario, tell the computer that we will control the Allied forces and decide whether we wish to use a handicap. Use either arrow key to locate the line and type (RET) to go to Menu B (Location Select). At this point, IBM owners using 5.25" floppy disks should remove Disk One from the drive and replace it with Disk Two. Apple II owners with one disk drive should remove the game disk, turn it over and put it back in the drive. Use an arrow key to locate the line and type (RET) to go to Menu C (Scenario Menu). Use an arrow key to locate the line and type (RET) to go to Menu E (Edit Utility). The scenario briefing screen is displayed to the left of the menu window. IBM users must select the line and then position the cursor over the line and type (RET). Use an arrow key to locate the line and type (RET) to go to Menu N (Enhanced Opponent). We must now decide whether to play an enh anced computer opponent. Since we are just starting out, this probably isn't a good idea. Locate the line and type (RET) to go to Menu F (Handicap Utility). Since this is only a tutorial, we will give ourselves a break. The handicaps below the line benefit the Allies, those above benefit the Axis. Use an arrow key to locate the Allied line and type (RET) to go to Menu G (Player Select). Locate the line (Apple II and C-64) or the line (IBM) and type (RET). The cursor has been thrown into the briefing screen and you have the opportunity to change the commanders' names. Do this if you wish, otherwise type (RET) until you get back to Menu E (Edit Utility). Have a last look at the briefing screen and you'll see the Soviet Union has a major handicap advantage, the German forces will be run by the computer and the Russian forces will be run by human hands. Use an arrow key to locate the line and type (RET) to go to Menu H (Game Master). T hat's the preliminaries over with. We're just about ready to play. Turn your menu card over to the game side. (c). The First Turn. Back to Menu H. A current turn briefing appears to the left of the menu window. This scenario starts on the am. turn and it is turn 1 of 15. Subsequent lines tell you the time of day and the date, the atmospheric weather and the expected weather forecast. The weather looks dreadful! IBM users should note that the and lines have been replaced with and . The and lines in the menu have been overprinted with a solid bar to show that you cannot access them. The solid bar will disappear from the line after the line has been accessed. This is to guard against accidentally selecting before issuing your orders. The line will always be overprinted during the game. The computer does not want you to see what it is doing! Locate the line and type (RET). This brings you Menu 2 (Operations). Your choices here are , or . Apple II and C-64/128 users can only access the option. T he screen will show the upper half of the map. Below is a summary of your force identity and the victory points you have accumulated to date; i.e. if you were to end the game at this point, you would have scored 57 Vps. (d). Reviewing Your Forces. Before issuing orders we'll review our forces, examine the battlefield, the objectives and the enemy forces. Select the line to go to Menu 4 (General Reports). This is just a branch menu. Select the line to go to Menu 5 (Unit Status). For Apple II and C-64/128 users, the name of your senior HQ appears beside its I.D. code in the menu window. You have one senior HQ under your command. IBM users will see the name of the senior HQ appear in the window itself. Select the or the <20 Army> line to display the 20th Army. This screen displays the status of an entire senior HQ at a time. There are four junior HQs, all of which are on the board at the start of the scenario. Each junior HQ controls three units while the senior HQ controls an additional four units which can be freely allocated to the junior HQs. These flexible units are called assets and are shown at the top of the display. For example, the 112th Tank Bde is currently attached to JHQ 3 (the 5th NKVD Div) while the other three assets are attached to JHQ 2 (the 233rd Rifle Div). The display tells you the identity, unit type, level of fatigue and the experience of each unit. Any losses sustained by the unit are shown on the right-hand side of the screen. The status screen is quite useful and should be consulted about once a day to get an overview of the condition of your troops. Type (ESC/f1) twice to go back to Menu 4. Select the line to obtain Menu 6 (Examine Friendly Objective). The cursor will be highlighting a Russian objective. Use the arrow keys to cycle through all of your objective hexes. There are eleven of them. The information in the lower centre of the screen tells you the name of the objective and, for IBM users, the name of the division (if any) assigned to that objective. The icons display the terrain type, the presence of cities, forts or minefields and who controls the hex. The text in the lower left of the screen summarises the turns for which Victory Point s are received, the number of VPs per turn, the VPs awarded for control at the end of the game and how many turns the objective has been held to date. For example, the town of Ozerezkoye is a Russian objective for turns 1 to 15; for each turn the Soviets occupy it they receive 10 VPs as well as an additional 50 VPs if they hold it at the end of the game. Look at all of your objectives to gain an idea of your overall requirements for winning the game. Check this screen often as the game progresses to make sure you are on track. Consider the display in the bottom right of the screen. The solid area is the overall map size. The smaller white box represents the current location of the cursor on the screen. As you move the cursor to different parts of the map, the small box will move to show the relative location of the cursor against the overall map. Type (ESC/f1) to return to Menu 4. We can examine the battlefield with the aid of the routines. Select to bring up Menu 7. The cursor and any visible objectives will be flashing. Use the arrow keys or the I,J,K,M keys to move the cursor over the battlefield. You can examine the terrain, the objectives or enemy and friendly units. Move the cursor to the German unit in the town of Gorki. You are told it is a large infantry unit contacted by friendly forces. Note the presence of a fort in the town. Move the cursor to the Russian unit in the town of Shigalovo. A full status report is provided about the unit. Now type (RET) to bring up the menu. Selecting the line will display the who controls each hex on the battlefield. Hex control is very important for movement and resupply. Selecting the line will temporarily remove the roads from the map. Selecting the line will temporarily remove all units from the map. These three features are cumulative; i.e. any or all of them can be active at the one time. Type (ESC/f1) to go back to Menu 4. It's time to get stuck into the Germans... at last! (e). Issuing Orders. Type (ESC/f1) to bring up Menu 2 and select the line to bring up Menu 8. Select the /<20 Army> line to bring up Menu 9 and then select to bring up Menu 13. We have four junior HQs to give our orders to. Select /<129 Div>. The menu window tells you that this formation is in the state. This determines what sort of orders we can give. The 20 Army HQ and the component units of the 129 Div have been highlighted and their target is indicated by the target marker. Select the line. The arrow keys will cycle the cursor through the component units of the 129 Div. You can see that there are three units of veteran infantry. All are sited on the snow terrain type. The line is always available from this menu. Use it to keep up with the location and condition of the units in each junior HQ as we go through them. Note that IBM users can access the Map Walk routines from menu 14. Type (ESC/f1) to return to Menu 14 and select the line to bring up Menu 18. This is the menu with the actual orders for a formation in the state. We won't waste time, so select to bring up Menu 19. This lists the attack options available to us. The options are , , and . Select and you will be returned to Menu 14. This order will set you up for an attack on the next turn. Type (ESC/f1) to go back to Menu 13. Give JHQ 2 (the 233 Div) orders as well. JHQ 3 (the 5 NKVD) is too far away from the enemy to be in the engaged or contacted state. It is in the state. Type (RET) to bring up Menu 16. Select the line. Use the arrow keys to cycle through the enemy units until the infantry unit north north-west of Scholochovo is located. Type (RET) to select it. JHQ 4 (Ind Bdes) is also and should be ordered to move against the German infantry unit occupying the high ground between Lunevo and Polyana. Type (ESC/f1) until you return to Menu 9. Select the line. You will have somewhere between 0 and 15 support points to allocate to your junior HQs. Only the 129 and 233 divisions can make any use of support points in this turn. Allocate half the number available to each division. Go back to Menu 9 and select the line. The assets are four special units which can be attached to any junior HQ. Use the arrow keys to cycle through your assets. You have 2 tank brigades, 1 anti-tank brigade and an artillery group. Do not change their present assignments. You should check your assets every turn and reassign them as necessary. (f). The First Turn Reviewed. We have issued prepare orders to the 129 and 233 divisions and advance on enemy orders to the 5 NKVD and the Independent Bdes formation. We have examined all the troops in our command and allocated support points. Now it is time to watch the fight! (g). The Computer's Role. Type (ESC/f1) until you return to Menu H, the Master Game Menu. If you think all is ready select . Combat and movement will then occur. Hit the space bar to continue after each report. Each junior HQ is identified as the attacker or defender and their current orders appear underneath. IBM users are provided with some additional graphics. Up to three bomb icons can appear to the right of the I.D. This tells you how much support has been added to the formation; none, light, medium or heavy. Up to three crosses can appear beside the formation order. This tells you how many strength points have been lost by that formation; none, light (less than 10%), medium (20%-30%) or heavy (more than 30%). If three 'death heads' appear, the unit has been KIAd (killed in action, destroyed, rubbed out... however you like to describe it!). After the first turn is finished you will be returned to Menu H. (h). The Game Plan. War being what it is, it is not exactly possible to tell what will have happened by now. You may have inflicted some damage on the Germans; you may have taken some casualties yourself. In any case, you will advanced against the enemy across the front. You should with the 129 and 233 divisions and with the other two formations. After that, you're on your own! Refer to the game manual for a full description of all the game menus. 3. THE SCENARIOS There are 6 scenarios included with the Panzer Battles game. The Moscow scenario (#2) is the tutorial and is highly recommended for beginners. In order of difficulty, the other scenarios are Minsk (#1), Korsun (#6), Prokhorovka (#4), Kharkov (#3) and Kanev (#5). Each scenario is accompanied by a short historical briefing, a situation map which shows the locations of the opposing junior HQs at the start of the battle, player's notes and scenario variants. Before playing a scenario, we recommend you read all the notes and examine the situation map. 1. MINSK June 27th, 1941 Army Group Centre's initial attacks against the Soviet Union achieved complete surprise. Russian troops of the Western Military District were routed by the impact of Germany's panzer troops. Within days, Guderian's and Hoth's Panzer Groups had sliced through the Russian front, pocketing half a million men. Remnants of the Soviet 3rd and 10th Armies were all that opposed the capture of Minsk, backed up by the 13th Army in Minsk itself. The battle for Minsk lasted two days and then the panzer groups were off again; Hoth's group taking the high road through Vitebsk and Orsha to Smolensk while Guderian's group took the low road through Bobruisk to Rogachev and beyond. The hastily thrown together 16th and 20th Armies were all that stood in the way. Predictably they were smashed, then pocketed and finally overwhelmed by the infantry which followed hard on the heels of the panzers. The panzer groups reached Orsha and Rogachev on July 3rd. Here they regrouped for a day before preparing to get across the Dnepr. The Soviet position had become desperate. Zhukov, freshly promoted to command the Western Theatre, assembled a force of 20 divisions between Schlobin and Klimovicze. This force was thrown against the German bridgeheads on the east bank of the Dnepr. It was to no avail. The panzers could not be stopped. This scenario is a lot more fun for Germany than Russia. It begins on the outskirts of Minsk and should end with the Germans somewhere on the east bank of the Dnepr. For the Germans, the senior HQs are Armees or Panzer Groups. The junior HQs are Korps. The units of manoeuvre are divisions. For the Russians, the senior HQs are Fronts. The junior HQs are Armies. The units of manoeuvre are divisions. PLAYER'S NOTES GERMANY. The key to winning this scenario is to keep on the move. You won't have much trouble with the Russians, at least until you reach the Dnepr. The victory points assigned to each objective are a timetable for your advance. There is little point in capturing an objective after the VP time-frame has expired. Be careful you do not exhaust the panzer divisions. Rest them as soon as they become tired. You have plenty of air support which is pretty well uncontested. Concentrate your airpower on single targets. The Russian armies are brittle so that once their casualties reach a critical level, they will disintegrate. RUSSIA. What can we say? It's a brave soldier who is prepared to take command in this dreadful situation. All you can do is delay the German advance as long as possible. Do not waste the 16th and 20th Armies by fighting too far forward. Hold them back so they can team up with the 22nd, 19th and 24th Armies and hopefully hold the Germans on the line of the Dnepr. If you can keep the east bank clear of the enemy, then you'll win for sure. SCENARIO VARIANTS (a). Assume the Russians had not been so completely disorganised in the face of the initial German invasion. Make all Soviet HQs not brittle. (b). Assume the VVS (Soviet Air Force) had not been destroyed in the first days of the war. Give the Soviets 15 daylight support points with a reliability of 2 and a rating of 8. 2. MOSCOW December 4th, 1941 As luck would have it, the winter of 1941 was one of the worst this century while, in contrast, the winters of both 1940 and 1942 were very mild. Germany was ill-prepared for the onset of poor weather, in fact the decision to equip army troops with winter clothing was not made until August. Nor was any provision made for the supply of mobile forces in bad weather. Only tracked vehicles were capable of hauling supplies through the quagmires which had once been Russian roads. There were precious few of these and in consequence the armoured formations which had performed so well in good weather were reduced to shadowy remnants of their former selves. There were other difficulties confronting the German drive on Moscow. Chief among them were the time lost when large parts of Army Group Centre were sent south to assist in the capture of Kiev and the hesitation resulting from Hitler's indecision about the next major objective. By the time Moscow was finally settled on, and the mobile element s of Army Group Centre recalled, October had rolled around and the heavy rains had begun. Operation 'Typhoon' was the name given to the German assault on Moscow. Throughout October and November, German forces ground their way ever closer to the Soviet capital, meeting ever stiffer resistance. By the end of November, the German advance had been halted, as much from exhaustion, lack of supplies and the bitter cold as from the Soviet defence. The Russian High Command (commonly referred to as STAVKA) had been carefully biding its time, building up a fresh reserve of experienced troops, many of them from Far Eastern stations. A counter-offensive was planned. General Vlasov's 20 Army would lead the way! This scenario examines part of that Russian offensive. The map area (as shown in the accompanying situation map) describes some 500 sq. km about 40 km north-west of Moscow. Three divisions from General Hoepner's 4th Panzer Armee defended the section of front to be attacked by the first wave of Vlasov's 20 Army. After 4 days of continuous fighting, the German line still held. The cost to both sides was tremendous. Just days later, a second wave, as well as pressure on other sections of the front, forced the Germans to withdraw. Moscow was safe... and never seriously threatened again. For the Germans, the single senior HQ is 4th Panzer Armee. The junior HQs are divisions. The units of manoeuvre are regiments. For the Russians, the single senior HQ is 20th Army. The junior HQs are divisions or their equivalent. The units of manoeuvre are regiments and brigades. PLAYER'S NOTES GERMANY. This is the only scenario in the game where you must defend grimly without any hope of reinforcement. You will have to withstand continual attacks from the Russians. You score your victory points through occupation of key objectives so you are compelled to hold your ground no matter what. If the Russians bust through you've had it; there are no reserves to repel them. The Russians score big victory points for killing your men while get hardly any for killing theirs. Your only hope is to hang on to those objectives! RUSSIA. Time and the tough German forts are the major obstacles you must overcome if you are to break through the enemy position and thrust into the undefended rear areas. You should be aware that most of your junior HQs are brittle (60%). Don't be too alarmed about this, the German junior HQs are also brittle (70%). If you're lucky you will get some off-board support, if not you'll have to use your lone artillery group wisely. Killing Germans is the main job. Don't forget to take advantage of the minor combat routines to achieve this. The more units you have adjacent to a particular enemy unit, the greater the chance you'll inflict casualties through the minor combat routines. SCENARIO VARIANTS (a). Assume the Germans had been better prepared for the poor weather. Add 2 to the supply values for all German HQs. (b). Assume the VVS (the Russian Air Force) had been in a better condition to assist the ground offensive. Increase the reliability of the daylight support points to 2, change the Air Superiority status to 5 and change the Air Superiority reliability to 4. 3. KHARKOV May 12th, 1942 The bitter, protracted winter of 1941-42 finally came to an end about the beginning of May. Both Russia and Germany planned major summer offensives... and in the same place. The Russians attacked first, on May 12th. Kharkov was the primary objective with second phase operations planned against Krasnograd and eventually Poltava and Dnepropetrovsk away to the south-west. The main impetus of the Soviet onslaught came from 6th Army, attacking out of the bulge below Kharkov. Above Kharkov, the 28th Army attacked southward from Belgorod. Flushed from their winter successes against the Wehrmacht, the Russians badly underestimated the condition and resolve of their enemy. German plans for the summer envisaged a pincer operation to trap the Russian armies between the Don and the Donets to be followed by an advance to the Caucasus oil fields. Before these plans could be put into effect, the bulge below Kharkov had to be straightened out. This operation was named Fridericus and scheduled to kick off on May 18th. Caught by surprise, the first few days of the offensive went well for the Soviets. The German defenders were forced into strong-points to avoid annihilation, allowing the Russians to rush through the gaps in the front. Lead elements of the Soviet 6th Army got as far as Krasnograd before the German counter-attack went in. Timoshenko, in overall command of the Soviet operation, detected the German build up and the danger it presented and advised Stalin to call off the offensive and pull back before it was too late. Stalin refused to listen and on the May 16th, troops from Ruoff's 11th Armee and von Mackensen's 3rd Pz Korps tore into the southern flank of the Soviet advance. By the 22nd, Izyum was captured and the Russian 6th, 9th and 57th Armies neatly pocketed. 240,000 men were lost in what was to be the last, major Soviet pocket of the war. With these Soviet troops out of the way, there was little to stop the German drive on the Caucasus. The German 6th Armee, victorio us at Kharkov, got as far as Stalingrad. This scenario examines both the initial Russian offensive and the subsequent German counter-attack. For the Germans, the senior HQs are Armees. The junior HQs are Korps. The units of manoeuvre are divisions. For the Russians, the senior HQs are armies. The junior HQs are corps. The units of manoeuvre are divisions. PLAYER'S NOTES GERMANY. For the first couple of days the situation is pretty grim. You have two options with the isolated divisions of 6th Armee. You can leave them where they are, in the security of their forts, and hope that they will survive the Soviet attack. Or you can withdraw back to Kharkov and try to hold out there. You are on the defensive until reinforcements arrive in the south. The 3rd Pz Korps is a powerful force and will cut right through the Russians. You can make either Izyum or Balakleya your objective but don't forget your main responsibility is to destroy Russians. Once the pressure comes off 6th Armee, and some reinforcements arrive to strengthen it, attack south to assist 11th Armee. RUSSIA. Make hay while the sun shines! To be in a position to withstand the German counter-attack, you must have smashed their initial forces. The best technique to eliminate the fortified, but isolated, front line divisions is to concentrate on them one at a time. Capture Kharkov and then set up a defence in the rugged terrain south of that city. When the German counter-attack develops, delay the inevitable as long as you can. You can afford to lose the southern objectives provided you hang onto Kharkov and don't lose too many troops. SCENARIO VARIANTS (a). Assume Operation Fridericus had been scheduled to jump off at the same time as the Soviet offensive. Bring forward the arrival time of all units in 3rd Pz Korps to turn 3. Change the arrival hex to 18,27. Bring forward the arrival of the Soviet 5th and 6th Cavalry Corps and 73rd Infantry Corps to turns 6, 1 and 4 respectively. (b). The Soviets were tardy in committing reserves to the offensive once the initial break-through had been made. To rectify this, bring forward the arrival of 3rd Guard Cavalry Corps to turn 2 and redeploy the divisions of 52nd Infantry Corps to the front line (21,6; 21,7; 21,8). Increase Soviet daylight support points to 20. 4. PROKHOROVKA July 12th, 1943 Following the German defeat at Stalingrad, huge tracts of territory in southern Russia were reclaimed by the victorious Soviet armies. The Caucasus, except for a small lodgement on the Taman Peninsula, was cleared of Axis forces thus removing the threat to Soviet oil supplies. The Soviet advance took them as far as Kharkov, the scene of the Soviet disaster a year earlier, before the Germans rallied, counter-attacked and stabilised the front. Kharkov was recaptured yet again so that when the summer campaigning months came around the German front line had a large bulge in it. This was the Kursk salient. Assuming, correctly, that the Germans would make this salient the prime target of their summer offensive, the Russians fortified... and then fortified some more. By the beginning of July, the Soviet position had been made virtually impregnable. Masses of armour were grouped in reserve to deliver a resounding counter-attack at the right moment. True to form, Hitler's rigid military judgeme nt committed the rebuilt German armies to a frontal assault on the Soviet fort-wall. The plan was code-named Zitadelle. Some progress was made in the northern corner of the salient, slightly more in the southern corner. Hausser's IISS Pz Korps was thrown into the southern corner and after a week of heavy fighting, finally broke through the fixed defences. Three SS Panzer divisions raced for the township of Prokhorovka. Waiting for them were four tank corps and a mechanised corps. A mighty tank clash ensued. The battlefield was linearly divided into three sections by the Psel River to the west and a railway embankment to the east. In effect, three separate battles were fought. Tactically, the Germans had slightly the better of the engagement though losses were frightful on both sides. However, it was all to no avail. The Allied landings in Sicily compelled the Germans to withdraw troops, including Hausser's SS force, to bolster the failing Italians and the Zitadelle offensive was brough t to a halt. On July 17th, the Soviets went over to the offensive and in two months drove the Germans back to the Dnepr. This scenario examines the clash between Rotmistrov's 5th Guards Tank Army and Hausser's IISS Pz Korps. For the Germans, the senior HQs are SS Panzer divisions. The junior HQs are regiments. The units of manoeuvre are battalions. For the Russians, the senior HQs are corps. The junior HQs are brigades and battlegroups. The units of manoeuvre are regiments and battalions. PLAYER'S NOTES GERMANY. The situation is very simple. You must fight three separate battles. On the left bank of the Psel is 3rd SS Panzer division (Totenkopf), in the centre is 1st SS Panzer division (Liebenstandarte Adolf Hitler) and to the right of the railway embankment is 2nd SS Panzer division (Das Reich). The 1st SS will get the worst of it; it must contend with the 33rd Mechanised corps as well as a battlegroup from the weakened 31st Tank Corps. The 2nd SS has the best chance of breaking through and deserves the lion's share of the off-board support. The only routes of communication between the three battlefields are controlled by the Russians though your chance of getting that far north is fairly remote. By and large, victory will go to the player who destroys the most enemy units. RUSSIA. On the first turn of the game, you have some important strategic decisions to make. You must commit your reserves to one of the three battlefields. The safest course of action is to commit all of the reserves to the sectors they begin the game in. A bolder, and riskier, strategy is to stiffen the centre or right flank at the expense of the other. You are gambling that you can overwhelm one sector of the front before a similar disaster can befall you. If this is your first experience with the scenario, make a conservative decision. There are few vital objectives to worry about. Your main task is to kill Germans. SCENARIO VARIANTS (a). Assume the bridge at Bogoroditskoye had remained intact. To rebuild it, replace the major river hex at 8,17 with a bridge hex (terrain type 8). Add a road to the hex. IBM users with "full-map" graphics might care to re-paint the hex to show an intact bridge. (b). Air support throughout this battle was sporadic for both sides. Assume more co-operation could have been achieved. Increase the reliability of the daylight support points for both sides to 3. 5. KANEV September 23rd, 1943 In the aftermath of the failed Kursk offensive in July 1943, German forces throughout Russia were in retreat. The Soviet Army was determined to pursue their enemy with the utmost vigour and thereby prevent the establishment of major fortifications on the Dnepr River. Both sides reached the river at about the same time. The Soviet 3rd Tank Army forced a bridge-head at Zarubentsy while away to the south, lead elements of the German 8th Armee were crossing the Dnepr at Kanev. The Russians decided to commit their parachute reserve. This was the 1st Airborne Corps of some 10,000 men. The plan was to drop the parachutists on the west bank of the Dnepr to seal off the bulge in the river between Kanev and Khudorov. This would allow the Russians to build up strength on the west bank for a subsequent drive on Kiev, some 100 km further up the river. The logistics involved in getting the airborne operation underway proved too much for the limited transport capacity of the VVS. 180 transports were required; 6 were available on the 23rd, the day the airlift was supposed to begin. The first parachutists did not drop until the 24th and then only in dribs and drabs. The inexperienced transport pilots dropped their cargoes all over the place and to compound the troubles, several batteries of flak guns from the 24th Panzer Korps had arrived and gone into action along the Kanev-Ulyanik road. A full-strength panzer division, the 19th, was available to contest the 40th Army's crossing of the Dnepr at Balyka while some infantry divisions from the 8th Armee, now safely across the Kanev bridge, went into action in the rugged terrain north of Tschernyski to stall the advance of 3rd Tank Army. With each passing day, the German build up made the chance of a successful Russian breakout increasingly slim. The Russians persistently tried to force the German position throughout October with no success. Finally, they withdrew, in secret, most of the mobile forces and sent them north where a success ful assault broke through the German defences, resulting in the liberation of Kiev on November 7th. This scenario examines the first five days of the battle, that period when the Soviets had a real chance to force the Dnepr. For the Germans, the senior HQs are korps. The junior HQs are divisions. The units of manoeuvre are regiments. For the Russians, the senior HQs are armies. The junior HQs are mechanised, tank and infantry corps. The units of manoeuvre are infantry divisions and tank and motorised brigades. PLAYER'S NOTES GERMANY. You begin the scenario in a very vulnerable position. Except for the 34th division screening the east bank of the Dnepr, you have no troops on the battlefield! The 19th Pz Div trickles in from the west over two days while two infantry divisions and a panzer grenadier division reinforce you from the east. Disengage the 34th as soon as you can and move to the west bank of the Dnepr. Do not leave any troops on the east bank. As soon as you are able, push north with your infantry to contain whatever Soviet troops have pushed their way into the Dnepr bulge. The Soviet parachutists begin landing on the second day and if you can catch them before they link up with supporting troops, you can kill the lot. Do not abandon Kanev and do not let the Russians sneak across the Dnepr at Pekari. RUSSIA. You have more troops than your opponent and by and large they are of comparable quality. You must not hesitate for a moment. Force the Dnepr at Balyka and Khudorov and reinforce the bridgehead at Zarubentsy. Move your men at night! Use the 5th Guard Tank Corps to pin the 34th division. Send the 6 GTC into the Dnepr bulge while the 7 GTC and the 9 GMC should keep pressure on the crossing points between Zuschki and Buchak. If the Germans build up substantial forces in the Grischenzy-Tschernyski area, then the likelihood of a breakout is remote. You can still win provided you protect your parachutists and hold most of the objectives in the Dnepr bulge. SCENARIO VARIANTS (a). Assume the Russians had been better prepared to drop their airborne forces. Advance the arrival turn for all units of the 1st Airborne Corps to turn 2. Increase the supply value of the 1st Airborne Corps HQ to 5. (b). Assume the 7th Pz Div had been able to move in support of 24th Pz Korps a few days earlier. Bring forward the arrival turn of all units in the 7th Pz to turn 3. 6. KORSUN February 10th, 1944 The German 8th Armee managed to hang onto Kanev throughout the months that followed the abortive Soviet parachute drop across the Dnepr in September, 1943. In the terrible battles which raged all over the Ukraine in the autumn and winter of 1943, the Soviets had more or less pushed the Germans away from the line of the Dnepr River. By January 1944, only the salient at Kanev remained. It was risky business for both sides. The Germans threatened to roll up the rear of the Soviet 1st Ukranian Front to the north of Kanev while the exposed nature of the German position made it vulnerable to encirclement, in much the same way as the 6th Armee had been destroyed at Stalingrad the previous year. The Russians stole the initiative. On January 25th, First and Second Ukranian Fronts tore into both flanks of the German salient with such force that two Korps were trapped in the region Zvenigorodka-Korsun-Shpola... the Korsun Pocket! The pocket was sealed in just three days. Mud and more mud hampered the initial German rescue efforts. Nonetheless, by February 1st, 47th Pz Korps from the south-east and 3rd Pz Korps from the south-west were denting the hastily thrown up ring which formed the outer wall of the pocket. Soviet counter-attacks combined with plenty of air support stopped the Germans after several days of repeated probes. The pocket was shrinking. Both sides reinforced their positions and another plan was laid to rescue the trapped soldiers of Gruppe Stemmerman. On February 10th, Breith's 3rd Pz Korps made a second attempt to cut through to the pocket. His initial objective was the bridge over the Gniloi Tikich at Lisyanki. From there, the panzers would push northward, toward Korsun, until they linked up with the remaining troops from the pocket. Breith got as far as Lisyanki. Soviet heavy tanks (JS IIs and some JS IIIs) attached to the 5th Guard Tank Army prevented a further breakout. On the 16th, Gruppe Stemmerman was ordered to break out, whatever the cost. Abandoning everything, desperate German soldiers raced for the security of 3rd Pz Korps' position. Perhaps some 12,000 made it; 40,000 did not. This scenario covers Breith's second attempt to reach the pocket. For the Germans, the senior HQs are panzer divisions. The junior HQs are regiments. The units of manoeuvre are battalions and battlegroups. For the Russians, the senior HQs are infantry and tank corps. The junior HQs are infantry divisions and regiments and tank and motorised brigades. The units of manoeuvre are regiments and battalions. PLAYER'S NOTES GERMANY. Fortunately, it's not your job to worry about the dreadful strategic situation which has got you into this position. All you need concern yourself with is getting your panzers to Lisyanki as fast as you can. That won't be enough to win unless you've killed plenty of Russians and kept most of your own troops alive. 1st and 17th Pz should be used to keep a corridor open through which 16th Pz can drive on Lisyanki with minimum interference. The Russians receive plenty of armoured reinforcements and you'll need all your strength to deal with them. If you can capture Dzhurzhentsy and/or Khizhintsy by game's end, you'll not only win but also be responsible for liberating Gruppe Stemmerman! RUSSIA. Resign yourself to losing most of your infantry on the front line. They won't be able to stand for long against the panzers. What you can do, however, is delay their advance. Every turn you prevent the Germans from breaking through makes your eventual victory more certain. The 80th Tank Brigade in Lisyanki can be sent forward at the end of the first day. Just make sure you can replace it with a new arrival. SCENARIO VARIANTS (a). There was some squabbling going on between Konev and Vatutin. Assume a more unified command had resulted in a better disposition of Soviet reserves. Place all units of the 155 Tank Brigade within 1 hex of Zmilchentsy. Bring forward the arrival of the 7Gd and 181/18 brigades by 4 turns. (b). Assume (just for the fun of it) that the Germans were able to rustle up a battlegroup of Tiger tanks supported by some panzer grenadiers. Add a junior HQ to the 17th Pz Div. Its values are (KG Tiger) (Panzer) (6) (7) (7) (0). Assign three units to this junior HQ. The values for the first unit are (1T) (0,15) (11) (0) (20) (10) (3) (9) (9) (15) (1) (7) (7). The values for the second unit are (2T) (0,15) (11) (0) (20) (10) (3) (9) (9) (15) (1) (7) (7). The values for the third unit are (1PG) (0,15) (2) (0) (12) (12) (3) (9) (9) (8) (0) (7) (7). Run 5 Magazine Additional scenarios have been published in our support magazine, Run 5. Each issue contains at least two new scenarios for our various game systems as well as suggestions on game play, variations to existing scenarios, order of battle information for scenario designers, errata (features?) and historical articles. The magazine is a very useful tool for anyone interested in getting more from their original investment in the game. Subscription details are provided on a separate enclosure. -------------------------------------------------------------------- ROMMEL SCENARIOS Strategic Studies Group (SSG) -------------------------------------------------------------------- LEARNING TO PLAY THE GAME You have just stepped into the shoes of Lieutenant-General Freyberg, commander of the New Zealand forces in the Middle East. The date is March 26th, 1943. Behind you now is the humiliation inflicted upon your armies by the Germans - the debacle at Crete, the loss of Tobruk and the retreat to El Alamein. Your 2nd New Zealand Division is ready to assault through the Tebourga Gap into Tunisia, to clear the way for the British 2nd Armoured Division. If you succeed in time, your forces will cut off the remnants of the Afrika Korps retreating from the Mareth line and bring the North African Campaign to an abrupt and victorious end. Examine the situation map which accompanies the historical notes. You'll need to refer to it while you play through the tutorial. (a). Starting Up. Start up your computer using the procedure given in the preceding chapter. Menu A (Start Up Menu) appears to the right of the title page. As is the case with every menu in the game, you use the arrow keys to locate your choice from the menu and then type (RET) to select it. IBM users may alternatively use a function key to locate and select a menu item. The line in Menu A is the third line in the menu; therefore f3 will select it. Similarly, f4 will select the line. If you select the wrong menu, don't worry. Apple II and IBM users type (ESC) to go back to the previous menu; C64/128 users type (f1). IBM and Apple II users note that the (DEL) key will also serve as an (ESC) key in most situations. (b). Selecting the Tebourga Gap Scenario. Before we can start play, we have to select the Tebourga Gap scenario, tell the computer that we will control the Allied forces and decide whether we wish to use a handicap. Use either arrow key to locate the line and type (RET) to go to Menu B (Location Select). At this point, IBM owners using 5.25" floppy disks should remove Disk One from the drive and replace it with Disk Three. Apple II owners with one disk drive should remove the game disk, turn it over and put it back in the drive. Use an arrow key to locate the line and type (RET) to go to Menu C (Scenario Menu). Use an arrow key to locate the line and type (RET) to go to Menu E (Edit Utility). The scenario briefing screen is displayed to the left of the menu window. IBM users must select the line and then position the cursor over the line and type (RET). Use an arrow key to locate the line and type (RET) to go to Menu N (Enhanced Opponent). We must now decide whe ther to play an enhanced computer opponent. Since we are just starting out, this probably isn't a good idea. Locate the line and type (RET) to go to Menu F (Handicap Utility). Since this is only a tutorial, we will give ourselves a break. The handicaps below the line benefit the Allies, those above benefit the Axis. Use an arrow key to locate the Allied line and type (RET) to go to Menu G (Player Select). Locate the line and type (RET). The cursor has been thrown into the briefing screen and you have the opportunity to change the commanders' names. Do this if you wish, otherwise type (RET) until you get back to Menu E (Edit Utility). Have a last look at the briefing screen and you'll see the Allies have a major handicap advantage, the Axis forces will be run by the computer and the Allied forces will be run by human hands. Use an arrow key to locate the line and type (RET) to go to Menu H (Game Master).That's the preliminaries over with. We 're just about ready to play. Turn your menu card over to the game side. (c). The First Turn. Back to Menu H. A current turn briefing appears to the left of the menu window. This scenario starts on the noon turn and it is turn 2 of 11. Subsequent lines tell you the time of day and the date, the atmospheric weather and the expected weather forecast. The weather looks fine. The and lines in the menu have been overprinted with a solid bar to show that you cannot access them. The solid bar will disappear from the line after the line has been accessed. This is to guard against accidentally selecting before issuing your orders. The line will always be overprinted during the game. The computer does not want you to see what it is doing! Locate the line and type (RET). This brings you Menu 2 (Operations). Your choices here are , or . Apple II and C-64 users can only access the option. The screen will be showing some undistinguished part of Tunisia. Below the map is a summary of your force identit y and the victory points you have accumulated to date; i.e. if you were to end the game at this point you would have scored 39 VPs. (d). Reviewing Your Forces. Before issuing orders we'll review our forces, examine the battlefield, the objectives and the enemy forces. Select the line to go to Menu 4 (General Reports). This is just a branch menu. Select the line to go to Menu 5 (Unit Status). For Apple II and C-64 users, the name of your senior HQ appears beside its I.D. code in the menu window. You have two senior HQs under your command. IBM users will the see the names of the senior HQs appearing in the window themselves. Select the or the <2NZ Div> line to display the 2nd New Zealand Division. This screen displays the status of an entire senior HQ at a time. There are three junior HQs, all of which are on the board at the start of the scenario. Each junior HQ controls three units while the senior HQ controls an additional four units which can be freely allocated to the junior HQs. These flexible units are called assets and are shown at the top of the display. For example, the 4NZ Artillery battalion is currently a ttached to JHQ 3 (8th Bde). The display tells you the identity, unit type, level of fatigue and the experience of each unit. Any losses sustained by a unit are shown on the right-hand side of the screen. The status screen is quite useful and should be consulted about once a day to get an overview of the condition of your troops. Type (ESC/f1) to return to Menu 5 and examine your other senior HQ. This is not as large, only having two brigades. None of its battalions have arrived on the map at the start of the game. Type (ESC/f1) until you return to Menu 4. Select the line to obtain Menu 6 (Examine Friendly Objective). The cursor will be high-lighting the town of El Hamma. The text summarises the turns for which Victory Points are received, the number of VPs per turn, and any VPs awarded for control at the end of the game. The icons show that El Hamma is on village terrain and is Axis controlled. The arrow keys will cycle through all of your objective hexes. Use them now to l ook at all of your objectives to gain an idea of your overall requirements for winning the game. There are only four other objectives. Check this screen often as the game progresses to make sure you are on track. Consider the display in the bottom right of the screen. The solid area is the overall map size. The smaller white box represents the location of the hexes currently on the screen. As you move the cursor to different parts of the map, the small box will move to show the relative location of the current screen against the overall map. Type (ESC/f1) to return to Menu 4. We can examine the battlefield with the aid of the routines. Select to bring up Menu 7. The cursor and any visible objectives will be flashing. Use the arrow keys or the I,J,K,M keys to move the cursor over the battlefield. You can examine the terrain, the objectives or enemy and friendly units. Move the cursor to the Axis unit on Hill 209 You are told it is a small infantry unit contacted by friendly forces. Move the cursor to the Allied unit on Hill 184. A full status report is provided about the unit. Now type (RET) to bring up the menu. Selecting the line will display the who controls each hex on the battlefield. Hex control is very important for movement and resupply. Selecting the line will temporarily remove the roads from the map. Selecting the line will temporarily remove all units from the map. These three features are cumulative; i.e. any or all of them can be active at the one time. Type (ESC/f1) to go back to Menu 4. Let's give the Germans some stick! (e). Issuing Orders. Type (ESC/f1) to bring up Menu 2 and select the line to bring up Menu 8. Select the /<2NZ Div> line to bring up Menu 9 and then select to bring up Menu 13. We have three junior HQs to give orders to. Select /<5th Bde>. The flashing cursor indicates that the junior HQ is in the state. This fact determines what sort of orders we can give. The component units of the junior HQ have been highlighted and their target is indicated by the target marker. Select the line. The arrow keys will cycle the cursor through the component units of the junior HQ. We can see that we have two units of veteran infantry, one elite infantry unit and a unit of 5.5 inch guns. The 21st battalion is fit, having been used to capture Point 184 the previous afternoon. the other units are fresh. To the right of the unit description you can see what type of terrain the units are in, which is either clear or hilltop. The line is always available from this menu. Us e it to keep up with the location and condition of the units in each junior HQ as we go through them. Note that IBM users can access the Map Walk routines from Menu 14. Type (ESC/f1) to return to Menu 14 and select the line to bring up Menu 18. This is the menu with the actual orders for a junior HQ in the state. Our options are , , , . We have the Germans on the run, so we will attack them. Select to bring up Menu 19 (Attack Action). Blast them away with an order. Type (ESC/f1) to go back to Menu 13. /<6th Bde> is in an state also. Select (Menu 18) and then (Menu 19). Now select /<8th Bde> and go through the same procedure again to issue an order. Type (ESC/f1) until you return to Menu 9. Select the line and you will see that you have about 10 support points. (This can fluctuate from turn to turn.) Divide them equally between your three attacking junior HQs. Now to assign assets. Selecting will bring up Menu 11. We have four asset battalions, one cavalry reconnaissance and three artillery. All have been assigned to junior HQs which can make use of them this turn. Do not change the assignment. You should check your assets every turn and assign them, especially artillery, to the junior HQ that requires them most. (f). The First Turn Reviewed. We have issued assault orders to each junior HQ. We have allocated air support to our assaulting formations, and examined all the troops under our command. Now it is time to fight. (g). The Computer's Role. Type (ESC/f1) until you return to Menu H, the Master Game Menu. If you think all is ready select . Combat and movement will then occur. Hit the space bar to continue after each report. Each junior HQ is identified as the attacker or defender and their current orders appear underneath. IBM users are provided with some additional graphics. Up to three bomb icons can appear to the right of the I.D. This tells you how much support has been added to the formation; none, light, medium or heavy. Up to three crosses can appear beside the formation order. This tells you how many strength points have been lost by that formation; none, light (less than 10%), medium (20%- 30%) or heavy (more than 30%). If three 'death heads' appear, the unit has been KIAd (killed in action, destroyed, rubbed out... however you like to describe it!). After the first turn is finished you will be returned to Menu H. (h). The Game Plan. The fortunes of war being what they are, it is not exactly possible to tell what will have happened by now. The two Axis battalions we have attacked will have certainly either taken heavy losses or been KIA'd. In addition, your units will have closed up on the enemy and in doing so will have triggered a minefield. As time is pressing, you must continue to . /<2nd Div> will commence arriving on the map on turn 2. It should probably be held back until 2nd New Zealand has cleared most of the opposition from the pass. Once 2nd Armoured is let loose, use to get its junior HQs moving to El Hamma. Any opposition should be dealt with immediately, using with maximum air power. 3. THE SCENARIOS There are 8 scenarios included with the Rommel game. The Tebourga Gap scenario (#8) is the tutorial and is highly recommended for beginners. In order of difficulty, the other scenarios are Syria (#1), Alem el Halfa (#5), Sidi Rezegh (#2), Kasserine (#6), Cauldron (#4), Malta (#3) and Maknassy (#7). In addition to the general history, each scenario is accompanied by a short historical briefing, a situation map which shows the locations of the opposing junior HQs at the start of the battle, player's notes and scenario variants. Before playing a scenario, we recommend you read all the notes and examine the situation map. THE DESERT CAMPAIGN (1940-1943) INTRODUCTION With Italy's belated declaration of war on June 10, 1940 a whole new range of opportunities and problems confronted the major protagonists active in the Middle East. For Italy, it was a chance to expand its North African empire, at that time confined to Libya, Somaliland and the recently annexed Ethiopia. France was allowed to preserve a vestige of its pride by retaining its possessions in Tunisia and Syria. Great Britain, having survived the campaign in France by a whisker and facing the threat of invasion, was now confronted in a new arena. Germany, although unwilling to become embroiled in another theatre, was not blind to the possibilities of discomfiting the Allies yet further. To most people the campaign encompasses the 1,000 km stretch of Africa running between El Agheila and Alexandria, where the most renowned battles were fought - Tobruk, Crusader and El Alamein are familiar to all. To a certain extent this is due to the fact that Great Britain fought its most sustained campai gn of World War II here and won. And as we all know, in warfare the winner writes the histories. However campaigns vital to both sides were fought in adjacent areas with great vigor and with the normal trappings of war - bold deeds, victory, chaos, defeat and death. Mention North Africa and the mind turns to the rolling sand dunes under the blazing sun beloved of Hollywood directors. The forces arrayed in the theatre had to cope with some of the greatest variety of terrain nature could create. The burning sand hills of course, do exist. On the other hand, the Australians in Syria found they had to create units of ski troops! The general weather conditions are harsh and dry, yet sudden downpours could turn dry wadis into raging torrents overnight. It was against this background that Italy took its first faltering steps towards war in the desert. Probably the only aspect of Italy's participation in World War II that was well prepared was Mussolini's oratory. The people themselves were un willing, the forces ill trained and the equipment largely obsolete. Nonetheless, after taking three months to prepare, the Italian Tenth Army crossed the Libyan Border into Egypt. After an advance of 100 kms the army stopped to allow its supplies to catch up, and deployed in a series of fortified camps of approximately divisional size, 20 to 30 kms apart. The plan was to continue after a short pause; however, the days grew into weeks and then months and still the Italians did not move. The Allied forces under General Wavell, being heavily outnumbered, had initially confined their activity to heavy raiding of Axis positions. However in November a larger "raid" was authorised. The plan, devised by General Richard O'Connor, was to exploit the deployment of the Italians to isolate individual camps, achieve local superiority and destroy them piecemeal. The plan succeeded beyond all expectations. O'Connor's force of two divisions and a brigade moved swiftly through the gaps between the camps and in a series of well co-ordinated attacks using combined arms, three camps were overwhelmed within 24 hours. The Italians were paralysed by events and after three days of fighting, no less than four divisions and large amounts of supplies and equipment had "gone into the cage". O'Connor pressed to be allowed to continue the offensive. Although Allied operations in Ethiopia now deprived him of the 4th Indian Division, it was replaced by the 6th Australian Division. This division, together with the British 7th Armoured Division pushed towards Bardia and Tobruk, which the Italian commander, Marshal Graziani was ordered to hold. Bardia was surrounded by the Australians in mid December and after a three day assault fell on January 3rd 1941, with another 40,000 troops being captured. Tobruk followed two weeks later but O'Connor was still not satisfied. The Australians pushed along the coast while a brigade sized force boldly pushed through the desert to cut off the Italian forces. At the battle of Beda Fomm (5-7 February 1941) the Allies were able to establish a blocking position ahead of the retreating Italians, from which few escaped. In two months, O'Connor had driven the Axis forces back 600 kms and killed or captured 140,000 of their troops, all with a force which at the time amounted to not much more than two divisions. Although O'Connor still wanted to keep going, thereby ridding all of Africa of Axis forces, events elsewhere overruled his ambitions. Mussolini had continued true to form and launched a badly managed invasion of Greece via Albania. The Greeks had handled the Italians severely but not without cost and had called upon the British for help. Churchill has often been criticised for the decision to send troops to Greece. Such action was sure to bring a violent response from the Germans, who could not afford to have a hostile presence in the Balkans, especially as they were going to be fully involved in Russia. On the other hand, Churchill was fully awa re of the necessity to challenge the Axis wherever possible as well as being seen to be trying to assist countries in need. And so the die was cast. O'Connor lost his battle trained 6th Australian Division plus the other reinforcements he needed, while his armour units returned to Egypt for a badly needed refit. It was now known by the British that German units were in Libya, but it was thought their presence was mainly to prevent further disintegration of the Italian position. The German High Command shared this view, as did the Italians. The man on the spot, General Irwin Rommel did not. Although the forces available to him were meagre, amounting to only six formations (the 5th Leichte Afrika Division, the Italian Ariete armoured division and four low-grade Italian Infantry Divisions), Rommel soon discovered his opponents forces were no larger and were spread out in penny packets. All attention was on Greece and East Africa. A series of actions culminating in a full blown offensive o n the 31st March 1941, saw the British 2nd Armoured Division severely handled at El Agheila. It's remnants and the only other major formation in the area, the 9th Australian Division, were herded along the coast by the Italian infantry while Rommel's mobile troops sought to do a "Beda Fomm", only this time at Tobruk. The plan did not succeed as the Allied troops managed to avoid the trap, however a rich prize was secured with the capture of General O'Connor and his staff. On 9th April, Wavell made the decision to pull the bulk of his forces back to Egypt, while leaving the port of Tobruk garrisoned by the 9th Australian Division. Two days later, Rommel launched the first attack on the Tobruk defenders, the first of many to occur in the next six months. The Axis forces were generally better equipped than the Australians and those that took their places, however Rommel never managed to develop a reliable logistic base for his operation and his forces suffered from chronic supply problems . Accordingly, any attack on Tobruk was difficult to sustain. In the meantime, events elsewhere had not stood still. The Italians had been defeated in East Africa and the Allies defeated in Greece and then Crete. (For a scenario on the main part of the Crete campaign, see the original game in the series, Battlefront). While Tobruk was being invested, the remainder of Rommel's forces moved east to positions at Halfaya Pass and Sollum on the Egyptian border. Gradually a line was formed at the two points and extended south, with the Italian infantry holding the front and the Axis mobile troops in support. They did not have long to wait. On the 15th May, Wavell launched Operation Brevity, a brief offensive designed to capture Bardia and Sollum preparatory to launching a relief attempt on Tobruk. The plan failed, although the Germans did have some anxious moments. At great risk the Allied Command managed to run a fast convoy through the Mediterranean, carrying with it 238 tanks to re-equip the 7th Armoured Division. Using this Division together with the 4th Indian just returned from East Africa, Wavell hoped to pierce the northern end of the Axis front line with an infantry assault. The armour would then advance to seek out the German armoured forces and destroy them. This operation, christened "Battleaxe", was featured in Issue 7 of Run 5 magazine. The British plan looked good but Rommel gave them little chance to employ it. Outnumbered two to one in medium tanks and knowing that the attrition from a clash of armour would be of more benefit to his opponent, Rommel encouraged the British to expend themselves against anti-tank ambushes. These included the dreaded 88mm anti-aircraft guns, used for the first time in the desert. After two days of fruitless attacks by the British, Rommel attempted to turn the Allied southern flank. Fortunately, the threat was perceived and the British pulled back to their start lines. "Battleaxe", however, had failed. At the same time, away t o the east, events had taken a serious turn. 1. SYRIA June 9th, 1941 The campaign in Syria must rank as one of the great tragedies of World War II. At the beginning of the war, Syria and Lebanon were under the control of the French mandate granted after World War I. With the added buffer of a neutral Turkey, the Allies had no immediate concern over German aggression in this area and interdiction of the Middle East oil supplies. However, the surrender of France in June 1940 and the installation of a puppet government in Vichy altered the situation dramatically. For a time the British had their hands full coping with the Italians in Libya and later the first of Rommel's offensives and the debacles in Greece and Crete. However the establishment of strong German forces in Greece and Crete only a few hours flight from Syria, together with the recent Axis victories in Libya, was a threat the Allies could no longer ignore. Given sufficient casus belli by the Vichy authorities allowing German aircraft to use Syria as a staging point during the Iraq rebellion, t he allies attempted to neutralise the threat through diplomatic means. When these approaches were rejected, an Allied force of five brigades crossed the border on 8th June 1941. As usual the British Command was strapped for resources, as their first major counter-offensive against Rommel, Operation Battleaxe was also about to commence. They hoped that a reasonable show of force would allow the French to surrender with honour and that the campaign would be over in a fortnight. Hence minimum forces were assigned and given objectives commensurate with a police action. The reality came as a shock. The French had 18 battalions of reasonable to good quality troops, armour (the Renault 35, an undistinguished tank, but more than the Allies initially mustered) and some of the best defensive terrain in the world. The French had resolved to fight. Thus after a week of bitter fighting, the Allies had only reached a line running approximately Sidon-Jezzine-El Kuneitra-Kiswe, reaching this latter ob jective only because the French had chosen not to fight before it. On the 15th the French launched a series of fairly successful counter-attacks towards Merjayoun and El Kuneitra, recapturing both towns and severely mauling several allied formations including the 1st Royal Fusiliers, which was totally destroyed. Although these attacks were never serious enough to defeat the invasion, for a time they caused a panic in the Allied command and made them realise the Vichy forces were not going to roll over and play dead. The 16th British Infantry Brigade was introduced into the campaign on the 17th to make up losses and augment the Free French Brigade d'Orient, which was showing an understandable reluctance to fight fellow Frenchmen. In the next few days a renewed Allied effort saw the vital cities of Damour and Damascus captured and although the campaign was to continue for another two weeks, the beginning of the end was in sight. The scenario commences on the second day of the campaign (9 th June 1941) and continues until 21st June, the day Damascus historically fell. The ground scale is 2.5km (1.6 miles) to the hex. Neither side has any airpower they can rely on. PLAYER'S NOTES COMMONWEALTH. You have generally better troops than the Vichy and more of them. Unfortunately, the terrain is completely against you. This is a grinding campaign where the French will try and block you at every opportunity while you steadily crunch your way to your objectives. However you must take care. The French do have a potent counter-attack capability with their tanks and any exposed troops, low on strength or supply, or fatigued, can expect to be dealt with severely. Hence you must plan carefully, rotate your brigades when they need rest and not allow your frustrations to cause you to over-commit your troops. VICHY FRENCH. For most of the game you can expect to be on the defensive as your troops are weaker than the allies and of lesser quality. You do, however, have two significant advantages. First, the terrain is abominable and the Allies have to push you out of it. This will cost him time, supply and men. Secondly, keep watch for Allied units that have been in heavy combat and have taken losses. They may be ripe for counter-attack. Even the threat of such action can be effective, so try to always maintain a reserve. SCENARIO VARIANTS (a) Germany paid only minimal attention to the events in Syria, as they had a somewhat more important project on at the time - the invasion of Russia! The Allies were generally not aware of this and were properly fearful of the introduction of German troops into Syria. Assume the 100th Regiment of the 5th Mountain Division (which at this time was on garrison duty on Crete) had been flown in. The regiment can be attached to any Axis division of your choosing. Regt HQ (7,5,6); 1st Bn (1,28,6,0,0,11,5,8,8,6,0,12,7,6); 2nd Bn (2,28,6,0,0,11,5,8,8,6,0,14,7,6); 3rd Bn (3,28,6,4,0,11,5,6,6,9,1,16,7,6). (b) Assume the Allies had diverted resources from "Battleaxe". Make all units of the 16th Brigade available on turn 9. Give the Allies five daylight air points and change the air superiority rating to 6 (Strong Allied) and its reliability to 6 (Dependable). INTERLUDE With the high attrition of the Battleaxe operation in June 1941, neither side was able to mount further offensive operations until November. The lull allowed new formations to be bought up or old ones to be reorganised. For example, the German 5th Leichte Afrika Division became a full strength Panzer Division, the 21st. After Battleaxe, Rommel's planning was directed to storming the Tobruk fortress. This attack was originally set down for September, but was continually postponed due to the paucity of supplies arriving from Europe. The date was finally fixed for the 21st of November. The British had not been idle either. The resupply of Tobruk was difficult and costly, the fortress had to be relieved. It was planned to swing under the southern flank of the German line and push north, while another force simultaneously broke through near Bardia. The operation was code named "Crusader" and set down for the 18th. So the stage was set, both combatants were at full strength and planning offe nsive operations at the same time. 2. SIDI REZEGH November 21st, 1941 The British moved first. General Cunningham, the British commander intended to push north-west through Sidi Rezegh and on to Tobruk. The British moved off on the 18th of November. Rommel initially thought this was only a reconnaissance in force, but by the 19th he was forced to postpone the planned assault on Tobruk and concentrate both the 15th and 21st Panzer Divisions. The British 7th Armoured Division was the main assault unit committed at this time. Its 22nd Armoured Brigade ran straight into the Italian Ariete Armoured Division at Bir el Gubi and was badly mauled. The 4th Armoured Brigade skirmished with the 5th Panzer Regiment from the 21st Panzer for the whole of the afternoon of the 19th. Both the 7th Armoured and 7th Support Group Brigades were able to avoid these actions and push on to Sidi Rezegh where they were to camp for the night. The 20th was a day of lost opportunities for both sides. The British wanted to regroup the 7th Armoured Division at Sidi Rezegh before pushin g on to Tobruk, while the Germans pushed into thin air near Sidi Omar (far to the south-east) due to faulty intelligence. The main action was sporadic counter-attacks around Sidi Rezegh by the Afrika Division (Ex French Foreign Legionaries). There is no doubt that the Germans could have concluded the battle on this day if they had attacked Sidi Rezegh with the whole of the Afrika Korps. On the 21st (the day the scenario starts), Rommel realised that he must crush the forces at Sidi Rezegh. At dawn, the Commonwealth forces in Tobruk began to break out towards the armour digging in at Sidi Rezegh. Rommel recalled the 15th and 21st Panzer (who were still in the Sidi Omar sector, waiting for fuel resupply) and ordered them to take Sidi Rezegh on the run. This was no mean feat, both divisions were being engaged by the 4th and 22nd Armoured Brigades and had to fight rearguard actions while advancing on Sidi Rezegh. The two Panzer Divisions were stopped (just off the game map, to the south-ea st) by the artillery of the 7th Support Group firing over open sights, but not before two battalions of the 7th Armoured Brigade had been badly chewed up. During the evening, 21st Panzer moved to Belhamed while the 15th Panzer camped further to the east. The 22nd saw the 7th Armoured Division regrouped at Sidi Rezegh with the 1st South African moving up in support, with orders to take Point 178. At noon, the 21st Panzer attacked Sidi Rezegh from the north with all of the Afrika Korps artillery in support (Gruppe Bottcher). This took the British totally by surprise, and the whole 1KRRC battalion surrendered at the Prophet's Tomb. The 15th Panzer moved up from the southeast during the afternoon and captured the 4th Armoured Brigades headquarters during the night. The commander of the 7th Armoured Division realised that to hold the airfield was untenable, and a withdrawal to the south was the only alternative. The 23rd of November was Tottensonntag, (the day Germany remembers her dead) an d Rommel intended to eliminate both the 1st South African Division and the remnants of the 7th Armoured Division. In the confusion the 5th South African Brigade could not breakout and was eventually destroyed, but not before inflicting heavy casualties on the Germans. This is a short scenario, only running for 11 turns. The ground scale is just 800 metres (1/2 mile) to the hex, but the system handles the small scale with ease. The terrain is fairly standard with the escarpments being the only terrain type to present real problems for mechanised units. There is little supporting air due to both the highly fluid nature of the battle, and the blanketing dust thrown up by the armoured columns. PLAYER'S NOTES COMMONWEALTH. This scenario is different to many others that have been designed for the Battlefront system, in that the Commonwealth Player starts the game with only four "friendly" hexes in the middle of the board. The situation, is that the 7th Armoured Division has been isolated on the Sidi Rezegh Airfield and is awaiting the arrival of the 1st South African Division. You must very quickly form a defensive perimeter that includes Sidi Rezegh, the Forward Airfield and Point 178. If you don't hold these for most of the game, you will not accumulate enough victory points. On the first day this should be reasonably easy, as your only contacted opposition will be the regiments of the Afrika Division. Unfortunately, the 21st Panzer starts to arrive during the afternoon, and the units around Sidi Rezegh will be under extreme pressure by the morning of the 22nd. Remember this is a short scenario, and every turn you hold this important objective is another 20 points to your sc ore. Do not make the error of trying to hold too many objectives. Your forces, though reasonably mobile, will be crushed, if they are too spread out. Pick where you want to hold and commit everything. The South Africans are your main reserve and must be used according to the local situation. If Point 178 has not been taken yet, one Brigade should be allocated to this task. AXIS. You are in your element, here. You have more, and better troops than the Allied player and the ability to choose your axis of attack. The problem is that it is a race against time. If the Allied player can hold at least one of his two main objectives (Sidi Rezegh and the Forward Airfield) at the end of the game he will win. Therefore, your strategy must centre around taking these two objectives quickly, and keeping the relieving South Africans off balance. Your only troops on the board for the first day are the Afrika Division, and they should concentrate on holding the objectives they are deployed around. Do not use them for attacks until the Panzers arrive. The 21st Panzer arrives during the first night and should have Sidi Rezegh as its immediate objective. Everything going well, Sidi Rezegh should be yours by nightfall. The 15th Panzer arrives during the afternoon of the 2nd day, and should make straight for the airfield. After Sidi Rezegh has fallen, the 21st Panzer should c ontinue to push south towards the airfield, trying to pin as many Allied units as possible. One of the Panzer Divisions should get to the airfield, as the Allied player just doesn't have enough units to stop both. The Afrika Division, should also be used for attacks from late on the second day, just to maintain the pressure. SCENARIO VARIANTS (a) Assume that the two Panzer Divisions had problems disengaging from the Sidi Omar area. Increase the arrival time for each unit in both divisions by two. (b) Rommel acted on faulty intelligence when he ordered the Panzers to thrust towards Sidi Omar. Assume Rommel held his Panzers in reserve until he had divined the Allies intentions. All units of the 21st Panzer arrive on turn 1, while all of the 15th Panzer arrives on turn 3. (c) On the 19th, Rommel ordered the 21st Panzer Division to advance on Gabr Saleh. At that time the whole of the 7th Armoured Division was concentrated in this area. Fortunately, before the 21st reached Gabr Saleh the 7th's component brigades had been dispatched to various objectives. If the 7th had remained concentrated, the strung out 21st could have been seriously defeated. Assume the 21st Panzer blundered into the whole of the 7th Armoured, reduce the current strength of all the units in the 5th Panzer Regiment by 3, and the current strength of all the units in the 104th Panzer Grenadier Regiment by 2. INTERLUDE By 24th November, the Allies had taken heavy losses, especially to their armour and Cunningham was giving serious consideration to calling off Crusader. Balancing these thoughts were the solid gains made by Allied infantry in the Sollum/Halfaya area and the imminent likelihood of a breakout by the Tobruk garrison. At this point, Rommel tried to put together another outflanking operation. However, a full week of fierce, confused fighting had thrown communications for both sides into chaos. The Afrika Korps simply could not get sufficient forces moving in the right direction. In the meantime, the Tobruk garrison had managed to link up with the relieving XIII Corps. The battle continued in fits and starts until 4th December when Rommel, aware of his dwindling supplies and lack of tank replacements, decided to pull back to the Gazala line. The withdrawal was not without cost. Many repairable tanks were abandoned and a full Italian infantry division was captured at Bardia. The British were only in slightly better condition and took some time to follow up their defeated foe. An attempt to force the Gazala position was thwarted when the Desert Fox slipped away and by December 1941 he had reoccupied the El Agheila line. Most generals would have been prepared to sit things out, gather a reserve of supplies and equipment and await developments. However, in early January 1942, several vital convoys got through, virtually unscathed. At once, Rommel drew up plans for an audacious offensive against his complacent opponent. The attacks kicked off on 21st January. Even though his two Panzer divisions had only 100 tanks between them, they fell upon the scattered brigades of the British 1st Armoured Division strung out along the Benghazi Road and destroyed them piecemeal. It was the same story all over again. Although the British fought hard where they could, inexperience and bad tactics caused them to be bundled back to the old Gazala line. Although both sides suffered heavy losses, the Germans managed to maintain possession of the battlefield and hence were able to recover much damaged equipment as well as capture abandoned Allied supplies and materials. This defeat, more than any previous disaster, caused the British to re-examine their doctrine. With the benefit of hindsight, it is easy to pin-point the blame for the Allied failures in the desert. Most British Army officers had either infantry or cavalry backgrounds and the idea of co-operating with other arms (except artillery) was quite foreign to them. In contrast, the Afrika Korps operated tanks, mobile infantry and anti-tank guns in a deadly team. Rommel's success in the first months of 1942 was largely due to the untroubled arrival of much needed supplies from Italy. The employment of a Luftwaffe Air Corps in Sicily had completely suppressed Britain's island fortress in the Mediterranean, Malta. Plans were drawn up for a combined airborne and amphibious invasion. In the event, Rommel's offensive in North Africa delayed the operation and the opportunity to capture the strategically vital island was lost. It need not have been. 3. INVASION MALTA March 23rd, 1942) One of the major blunders made by the Axis in the Mediterranean was the failure to capture Malta. This mistake was to cost the Axis dearly in North Africa and ensure their final demise. The failure to take Malta was not for the lack of preparation and planning. As many as six plans were made and eventually discarded for various reasons. Of these six plans, the most viable was probably Operation Herkules, planned in the Spring of 1942. It required a combined assault from the air and sea, committing about 20,000 paratroopers (one German and one Italian Division), and a further 10,000 air-landing troops (one Italian Division) to prepare the way by seizing the beach landing area and an airfield for the following seaborne invasion troops. Another five divisions (about 55,000 men) formed these seaborne troops, with about 200 landing craft and as much of the Italian Navy as could be committed. Approximately 1500 aircraft had been earmarked for the operation to provide the aircover and ground support so vital to an operation of this kind. The Malta defences at this time were composed of Commonwealth troops, supported by a large number of artillery formations. More than 100 each of heavy and light AA guns were in constant use against the "neutralisation" policy adopted by the Axis against Malta. There was also more than 30 coastal artillery pieces and one regular artillery regiment of 25 pdr guns, 24 in all. This theoretical scenario is based on the assumption that the critical importance of Malta was recognised in time, and that the planned invasion went ahead. The scenario as depicted plans the invasion for the Western Beach, with drops in support of this landing area. The scenario is of medium length, running for 8 days. The ground scale is 2.5 kms (1.5 miles) to the hex. PLAYER'S NOTES COMMONWEALTH. The Commonwealth troops on Malta have a bit of a problem. Too many, for any commander's liking, are fixed position coastal batteries or anti-aircraft emplacements. Those mobile troops at your disposal are of reasonable quality, but care in committing them to assaults should be taken. The paratroopers should have as much pressure put on them as possible, but limit your attacks to one per day, and hope that the minor combat routines will be kind to you. An over vigorous commander during the first two or three days may well find that he is pushing the paratroops back, and even eliminating some, but having no troops to face the seaborne invasion. The coastal defences on the Western beaches are of vital importance. The longer they hold out, the more difficult it is for the Axis to reinforce as you engage new landed units and clog the routes to the other side of the island. It can also give you the satisfaction of seeing lots and lots of Axis routers streaming pa st you looking for somewhere to hide! AXIS. The Axis must quickly consolidate the central area around Krendi airfield with the first German parachute regiment. Holding Luqa airfield gives you some breathing space and victory points, so an effort should also be put in here. The second German regiment should clear the Western Beach to avoid being cut off. Once Krendi is cleared, the air-landing Italians will start arriving. Use these to relieve the first regiment and hold a reasonable perimeter for the amphibious assault. Once the amphibious landings start, get these troops quickly to the front, as by this time the paratroops are probably going to be somewhat battered. This is where clearing the beaches is of vital importance. If these troops have to fight their way to the front, then sheer weight of numbers will mean that the Commonwealth troops will probably have decimated your best troops - the paratroops. These need to be pulled out of the line and rested, as any attempt to capture Valetta is going to require them to be in reasonably good shape. SCENARIO VARIANTS This scenario is a gem for possible variations. (a) The invasion beaches can be altered. All turns of arrival stay the same but alter the entry hexes for all amphibious forces as follows. Western Beach (For the Percentage Commander). Hexes (12,16), (13,16), (14,17), (15,17), (16,18), (17,18), (18,18), (19,18), (20,18). Valetta Beach (For the Go for Broke Commander). Hexes (28,3), (29,3), (30,4), (31,4), (32,5), (33,5), (34,6), (35,6), (36,7), (36,9), (3610), (36,11) Northern Beach (For the Long Shot commander). Hexes (2,1), (2,2), (3,2), (4,3), (3,3), (3,4) All amphibious units must land at the same beach. The special assault regiment, though, may land on any beach. (b) To simulate the large amounts of flak present, losses from which the program cannot adequately handle, roll a die for each airborne or air-landing unit. 1-2 is no effect, 3-4 lose 1 point, 5-6 lose 2 points from the maximum strength to get the current strength of the unit. (This will have to be done through the design routines). Possibly more realistic, but definitely favouring the Commonwealth player, is to roll a die and subtract one. This value is then subtracted from the maximum strength to give the current strength. (c) All units may be placed up to three hexes from their current scenario start positions. Units designated as having "Shorebty" equipment must be placed in a coastal defence hex. INTERLUDE Returning to North Afrika, Lt-Gen. Ritchie had replaced the captured O'Connor in command of the newly organised Eighth Army. His plan called for the construction of fortified infantry posts, called "boxes", extending 60 kms inland. The intervening gaps were laced with minefields. To the rear of the boxes, Ritchie deployed his mobile forces. The theory for this arrangement was that the boxes would prove too slow and formidable to assault and in consequence, a flanking move to the south was the only practical route of attack; an attack which would be countered and stopped by the mobile formations. Ritchie's thinking was completely correct. Unfortunately, his mobile formations, and their tactics, were not up to the job. 4. CAULDRON June 5th, 1942 By late May 1942, Rommel intended to finally take Tobruk. The front line at this time ran from Gazala on the Mediterranean coast down to Bir Hacheim. The distance to Tobruk was approximately 80 kms (50 miles). Rommel's plan was simple, swing around the southern flank and drive towards El Adem, the main British supply area. This would force the British to retreat. Concurrently, the Italian 10th and 21st Infantry Corps would frontally attack the Gazala line. The operation was launched and went awry from the beginning, the Free French Brigade could not be pushed out of Bir Hacheim. This allowed the French to harass the German supply columns once the Afrika Korps had passed. The assault by the Italians failed to breakthrough and suddenly Rommel found he was a long way behind enemy lines, with very few supplies. The decision was made to halt the advance on El Adem and move northwest to Sidi Muftah and linkup with the Italians allowing supplies to be replenished. The Germans fell back to the "Cauldron" an are a bounded by the Sidra and Aslagh ridges and finally broke through to the Italians on the 1st of June, after eliminating the British 150th Brigade. The 2nd to 5th of June were spent by the Germans reducing the Bir Hacheim stronghold and preparing defences for the expected Allied counter-attack at the Cauldron. The assault came on the 5th of June. The Germans had positioned the 21st Panzer on Sidra ridge and the Italian Ariete Division on Aslagh ridge. The 15th Panzer was held in reserve. The British assaulted the Aslagh ridge with the 9th Indian Brigade and the 22nd Armoured Brigade in support. The Italians put up stiff but short resistance; they broke and the British were in the Cauldron, only to be stopped by antitank guns and artillery. They were forced to retire behind Bir et Tamr with serious losses. Meanwhile, the 32nd Army Tank Bde had attacked the 21st Panzer's positions on Sidra Ridge. The Brigade, without support, lost 50 out of 70 tanks. Rommel, anticipating the thrust of th e British offensive had had gaps cleared in the minefields to the south of the Cauldron and now saw the opportunity to counter-attack. The 15th Panzer emerged from the minefields near Bir et Harmat and struck at the rear of the troops holding Aslagh ridge. The whole of the 10th Indian Brigade, the support group of the 22nd Armour and four regiments of field artillery were cut off. By the evening of the 6th they had all surrendered. An uneasy lull fell over the battlefield. Both sides were exhausted and required extensive resupply. The Germans also wanted to clear Bir Hacheim, which was finally completed on the 11th. The battle round the Cauldron was rejoined on 12th June, with the British being pushed off the ridge to the north of Knightsbridge Box. The 201st Gds in Knights-bridge finally broke out during the night of the 13th after being isolated for two days. On the 14th of June, the British abandoned the Gazala Line. The rout had begun. This is a medium length scenario, running for 8 days. The ground scale is 3.2 kms (2 miles) per hex. There are extensive minefields scattered across the map, placed there as part of the Gazala line defences. PLAYER'S NOTES COMMONWEALTH. Be warned that you are in for a very challenging job. Aslagh ridge must be the first primary objective and if you can smash the Italians quickly you will get into the Cauldron and begin scoring big VPs. If you can't force the Italians out, then it's a matter of how big a loss you're in for. AXIS. You begin the scenario with the advantage of internal lines. The British will put heavy pressure on both the Aslagh and Sidra ridges in the first two days but you should be able to switch your central reserve (104 Regt/21st Pz Div) to whichever sector is most threatened. The 5th Pz Regt should hold Sidra ridge, provided it receives the divisional assets. The Italians can hold Aslagh ridge but you must be prepared in case they are pushed off early. Once the 15th Pz Div arrives, you can go on the offensive, aiming to capture as many objectives as possible. It is highly unlikely you will reach Knightsbridge. INTERLUDE Once it was clear that his forces had been defeated at Gazala, Ritchie ordered the Eighth army to retreat towards Egypt, leaving the 2nd South African Division to hold Tobruk. This time there would be no prolonged siege. The fortress' defences had been allowed to deteriorate, there were no minefields in place and the South Africans had no time to prepare fixed positions. Furthermore, Rommel's supply status was the best it had ever been. After a brief pause to reorganise, the Afrika Korps captured the port in 24 hours of fighting, taking 20,000 prisoners and badly needed supplies. The fall of Tobruk on 21st June, and Rommel's obvious desire to continue the pursuit, provoked scenes of sheer panic in Alexandria. Base troops were sent back to Palestine, the fleet made preparations to escape via the Red Sea and trench lines were dug along the eastern side of the Suez Canal. General Auchinleck, the Middle East Commander, kept his head. Realising his troops were incapable of facing the Afrika Korps in mobile battle, he relieved Ritchie and sought out a location where his flank could not be turned. Such a place was a line of ridges lying between the ocean and the Qattara Depression, a sand sea impassable to vehicular traffic. On a front of barely 60 kms, and with secure flanks, Auchinleck dug in. The place was El Alamein. There were three battles fought for El Alamein. The first began on 1st July and dragged on, inconclusively, for almost a month. Rommel, and then Auchinleck, attacked but neither could achieve anything against solid defensive positions. Both sides settled down to the task of rebuilding their depleted forces. The end was in sight for the Afrika Korps. Oblivious to his achievements, Churchill sacked Auchinleck, much as he had done Wavell. In both cases, the British leader's impatience had resulted in the loss of capable commanders. General Sir Harold Alexander was his replacement and General Bernard Montgomery was placed in command of the Eighth Army. Auchinl eck's plans were followed through by the new commanders, much to Churchill's dismay. On the other side of the hill, Rommel recognised that he was fast losing the initiative. The British were receiving the full benefit of the American war effort while Malta had recovered and was again causing serious losses to Axis supply convoys. Rommel's supply line extended all the way back to Tripoli and Benghazi. Every day wasted served only to increase Allied superiority. Rommel attacked. The second Battle of El Alamein was known as Alem el Halfa. 5. ALAM EL HALFA August 30th, 1942 Rommel's plan called for a swing around the southern extremity of the Allied position and then rolling up the rear areas. In fact, the plan was much the same as that used at Gazala. The dominating feature in the southern sector was the Alem el Halfa ridge which had been heavily fortified. Lying astride the proposed German advance, the ridge had to be captured before further progress could be made. The opening moves were disastrous. The German forces became entangled in the extensive minefields and were nowhere near the ridge by 6 am on the 31st; the time they should have been there. Rommel's senior formation commanders, Generals von Bismarck and Nehring were casualties. At this point, Rommel almost cancelled the attack. However, later that morning, events began to improve. The minefields were eventually cleared and the first attacks against the ridge went in that afternoon. Defending the ridge was the British 22nd Bde, dug in and equipped with new Grant medium tanks. The German attacks , with air support, could not dislodge the defenders. In the evening, the Germans withdrew and camped for the night to the south of the Alem el Halfa ridge. Tank losses on the day were much the same for both sides. The attack was recommenced on the morning of 1st September by the 15th Pz Div. The 21st Pz could not take part as it had run out of fuel. Once again, the Germans were repulsed although the British 8th Armoured Bde which tried to intervene from the east was severely mauled. Meanwhile, the 90th Light and the Italian Ariete and Littorio armoured divisions had been fought to a standstill by the 2nd New Zealand Division around Alem Nayil. The night of 1st/2nd September was the worst the Afrika Korps had ever experienced. The bombing and shelling was so heavy that it was forced onto the defensive although a crippling shortage of gasoline kept the Germans immobile for two days. On the 3rd, the Germans withdrew to their start positions. Also on the 3rd, Montgomery allowed the New Ze alanders, reinforced by the British 44th Inf, to attack towards Deir el Munassib. Fierce fighting raged for two days with the Allies sustaining over 1,000 casualties but little else. The German defence held and the battle was over. Montgomery is still criticised for his failure to exploit the German immobility on 2nd September. His reasons for inaction were the inexperience of his troops and his characteristic reluctance to take chances. This conservatism was to be the hallmark of the Allied advance, all the way to Tunisia. Paraphrasing his leader, one could well describe Montgomery's generalship as "Never in the field of human conflict have so many taken so long to achieve so little against so few!" The battlefield represents the area fought over by the 15th and 21st Pz Divisions. The scale is 1.6 kms (1 mile) to the hex and the battle runs for 5 days. PLAYER'S NOTES COMMONWEALTH. At last the Allied player has the forces to stand and slug it out with the Afrika Korps. During the initial German attacks you must control any urge to counter-attack until the arrival of the 8th and 23rd Armoured Bdes and the 7th Armoured Div. Stay in your forts until then. By the afternoon of the 1st, you should be in a position to take the fight to the German tanks. AXIS. There is only one objective for the Axis forces. Take Alem el Halfa ridge and hold it for as long as possible. If you can't do this, you can't win! As well, the 90th Light must crush the New Zealanders and hold the 44th Inf at bay. Furthermore, you must deal with the 7th Armoured when it arrives from the south. We wish you good luck. SCENARIO VARIANTS (a) The presence of the RAF had a large effect on the course of the battle. Assume that the build up of British air strength had been delayed. Reduce the day and night support points to 8 and 2 respectively and the rating to 3. (b) The HQ supply values for the German Panzer units are generous. A more historical representation may be effected by reducing the supply value all Pz HQs by 2. INTERLUDE With his hopes dashed, Rommel had no choice but to stand and await Montgomery's counter-blow. His defensive measures, the best he could manage, were to heavily fortify his infantry divisions in the front line and deploy his mobile troops in reserve in the rear to deal with any Allied breakthrough. Montgomery's plan, although unimaginative, guarantied that he could not lose. The basic plan called for an infantry attack on the northern part of the Axis line which would in due course bull-doze its way through the defenders. Once this occurred, the armour would pass through the gaps to pursue and defeat the foe. It was to be a battle of attrition. The third Battle of El Alamein kicked off in the early hours of 23rd October, under the cover of a massive bombardment. The Allied infantry, advancing on narrow divisional frontages because of the extensive minefields, could not employ their maximum combat power and the Axis defenders were able to hold the initial assault. For ten days the opposi ng infantry fought it out. Numbers told in the end and at last the Axis position crumbled. At this point, Rommel returned from convalescence in Europe. The situation was critical. The only solution was to withdraw whatever troops could be salvaged. A general retreat was ordered for 3rd November. However, on hearing of this, Hitler issued another of his infamous "no retreat" orders. Montgomery, for his part, was unable to take advantage of the perilous German position. After 36 hours of desperate pleading, Hitler relented and allowed Rommel to withdraw his forces. There is little doubt that his decision was influenced by the news that Allied troop convoys were heading into the Mediterranean, destination unknown. Rommel was able to extricate his mobile forces but 20,000 German and Italian infantry were captured at El Alamein. The surviving Germans were determined to carry on and over the ensuing three months conducted a skilful withdrawal in the face of an admittedly cautious pursuit. Fa r to the west, 2,500 kms from El Alamein, the final nails were being driven in to the Axis' African coffin. On the night of 7th November 1942, an Anglo-American force of some six divisions came ashore in Vichy controlled Algeria. A combination of rough surf and inadequate training ensured that the landings were a debacle. Fortunately, French opposition was mostly negligible; a determined defence would have resulted in an Allied disaster. By the evening of the 10th, Admiral Darlan, the most competent French leader of the war and the commander of Vichy forces in North Africa, ordered his men to surrender. Several days later he was assassinated and suspicion still lingers that British intelligence had some part in his demise. Darlan was an avowed Anglophobe. This unexpected turn of events provoked an extreme crisis for Germany. Hitler exposed the facade of Marshall Petain's independent French State by marching ten divisions into Vichy. Yet there were almost no German troops in Algeria or Tunisia. A rag-tag force, consisting of base personnel, re-inforcements destined for Rommel and sundry odds and ends were despatched to Tunis. They were organised with remarkable speed by the German commander, Nehring, now recovered from his wounds, and sent out to block the Allied advance into Tunisia. The Allies were experiencing their own problems. The east and west extremities of the original landings were about 800 kms apart so that the forces at Oran and Casablanca were too far away to support an advance on Tunis. Furthermore, the Allies were concerned that Hitler could attack Spain through the Pyrenees and, if successful, cut off the forces in North Africa. And lastly, the weather went from bad to atrocious, immobilising everything in a sea of mud. Nonetheless, by the end of November, brigade size formations of Allied troops were feeling out the German positions. A number of sharp but inconclusive clashes occurred as each side probed for an advantage. Although the Allies had num erical superiority, their troops lacked the battle skills that only long training or hard combat can instil. Furthermore, the German forces had local air supremacy and used it to maximum effect. Thus the line settled down, running pretty well north and south, about 70 kms west of Tunis. Both sides engaged in probes and local offensives in January with the Germans generally getting the better of their opponents although the Allied material superiority offset these gains. Reinforcements from Italy continued to arrive, including some of the infamous Tiger heavy tanks. The German Army in World War II operated on the basic premise that the best defence was a good offence. The remnants of the Afrika Korps had at last reached Tunisia and together with fresh reinforcements, allowed Rommel to create a mobile reserve. He waited only for an opportunity to strike. Such an opportunity presented itself in February 1943 at a small village called Sidi Bou Zid. 6. KASSERINE PASS February 14th, 1943 The German offensive commenced at dawn when the 10th and 21st Panzer Divisions fell upon Combat Command A of the 1st US Armoured Division and part of the 168th Regimental Combat Team of the 34th Infantry Division. The unpreparedness of the Americans and the usual attacking flair of the panzers left CCA severely mauled and the infantry cut off to be eventually captured. A counter-attack on the 15th by CCC, the only armoured reserve in the immediate area, met with disaster and the Allies were forced to retreat to Sbeitla and Thelepte. Fortunately for the Allies the divided German command (von Arnim had control over 10th Panzer, while Rommel commanded 21st Panzer and the Deutsche Afrika Korps, by now a divisional sized unit), had 10th Panzer moving on Pinchon on the 16th and 17th in a fruitless attempt to mop up more soft Allied targets, while 21st Panzer tried to take Sbeitla on the run. Although the Allies were eventually pushed out of this position, CCB was able to hold long enough for the bulk of the US forces to retire in reasonable order. In the meantime, DAK had driven up from Gafsa (off map, south of Thelepte) and had linked up with 21st Panzer at Kasserine. Sensing in the panicky Allied response the chance to emulate his victories of old, Rommel sought permission to press on towards the major American headquarters at Tebessa. He was overruled by his superiors however and ordered to attack towards Thala and Sbiba on the 19th. The attack on Sbiba by 21st Panzer was repulsed by an Allied composite force based on the British Brigade of Guards and no further progress was made. The attack on Kasserine Pass slowly but surely progressed and with the return of the 10th Panzer, on the 21st, an attempt was made to take Thala. However, Allied reinforcements were now pouring into the area and Rommel, realising the initiative was now lost, withdrew on the 22nd leaving behind a much battered II Corps to lick its wounds. This is a medium length scenario covering 8 days of bat tle and using all the map area the computer can hold. The ground scale is 4.8 kms (3 miles) to the hex. All terrain other than clear presents real problems for mechanised troops, hence the attack will be channelled along the main communication lines. PLAYER'S NOTES ALLIED. In the battle the Germans handed II Corps a severe thrashing. You can expect history to repeat itself. Although you have a lot of men, their quality is not good and it is a while before their command comes together. You cannot stand up to the panzers in an even fight and instead you will have to seek good defensive terrain and once there, use your numerical superiority to cycle fresh troops forward as your front line battalions take losses. The German player will be out to kill your men; he gets a lot of points for this. It is your job to ensure that your damaged men are pulled out of the line to rest and rebuild. AXIS. Your initial attack should smash through the Sidi Bou Zid position, however once taken you face the same problem as Rommel; where to now? Most of your points will be earned from killing Allied units, hence you must make them your targets. Pursuing weakened units to the death is probably the best technique and if the odd objective hex comes your way as well, so much the better. SCENARIO VARIANTS (a) The Allied forces were badly deployed at the commencement of the battle and scattered in penny packets. Assume the Allies, who were forewarned of the German offensive, took better steps to prepare for the onslaught. The units of 168 RCT at Sidi Bou Zid should be fortified, while CCB should be setup at Sbeitla. In addition, bring forward the arrival turn of all reinforcements by 4 turns. (b) The German High Command forced upon Rommel the objectives of Thala and Sbiba, whereas he would have preferred to attack towards Tebessa. Assume Rommel had had his way and reduce the end game victory points for Thala and Sbiba to 5 each and make Tebessa 200. (c) The Axis suffered chronic supply and administrative problems due to the divided command. Assume these could have been solved and give each Axis Division a supply and admin value of 6 and 7 respectively. (d) It is clear that the "bunker" mentality and gormless nature of General Fredenhall had caused a severe decline in the morale of his troops. The vastly improved performance of the same soldiers under Patton little more than a month later is testimony of this. Assume this problem had not arisen and increase the experience of all US bns by 1 and the leadership of their regiment and division HQs by 1. INTERLUDE Kasserine was a severe shock to the Allies. It brought home the reality of war and paved the way for a better, tougher army to face future battles. For Germany there was the certain knowledge that it was only a matter of time before North Africa, indeed their homeland, was lost. Rommel is reported to have been dismayed at the lavish scale of supplies and equipment available to the Allies. His health had again deteriorated and in early March he was recalled to Germany to recover. The final scenes in the North African drama were played out in his absence. The Allies planned a two-pronged assault on German positions. The British Eighth Army was to attack from the east at Mareth while a supporting attack was made by the American II Corps at Maknassy. 7. MAKNASSY March 16th, 1943 II Corps was badly shaken and demoralised. At Kasserine Pass, the Germans had taught II Corps a lesson in how to fight a battle. As a result, morale and discipline were at an all time low and something had to be done. On March 6th, 1943, Gen George S. Patton Jnr was given command of II Corps and told to turn it into a fighting outfit. By March 15th, a new plan limiting II Corps to a subsidiary role to the British 8th Army's main attack on the Mareth Line was ready. Dubbed Operation WOP, II Corps was to take the vital crossroads at Gafsa in the initial stages of the advance, and then to push towards El Guettar and Maknassy and try to draw off the German reserves that would otherwise reinforce the Mareth Line. Despite arguments for a greater thrust to the sea to cut off the Germans, Alexander limited II Corps to the original plan. II Corps consisted of the 1st, 9th, and 34th Infantry Divisions, and the 1st Armoured Division. The plan was to have the 1st Infantry drive on El Guettar, the 1st Armoured on Maknassy, and the 9th was in reserve. The 34th Division was positioned further north, and was not engaged in the Maknassy area. The Axis defenders consisted of parts of the 5th Panzerarmee which held north and central Tunisia at the time. Around Gafsa and El Guettar was the Centauro Armoured Division, somewhat incomplete, as part of the 1st Italian Army which was holding the Mareth Line. Around Maknassy were parts of the 30th Italian Corps, mainly the 50th Special Brigade. Rommel had left Africa on the 9th of March, so Gen von Arnim was in overall command. The Americans began moving on the 16th. On the 17th Gafsa was taken after being abandoned by the Germans. A great opportunity to press the attack slipped by for Patton as there was no German opposition; but he was ordered to establish his base of operations and could not advance. Heavy rainstorms during the 18th & 19th slowed any further advance. The weather cleared on the 20th and 1st Armoured attacked through Sened Station towards Maknassy but got bogged down in difficult terrain and mine fields, and did not capture it until the 21st. A "demonstration" towards Maknassy was now called for, but new orders were received to take the higher ground east of Maknassy, but not to proceed beyond it. On the 22nd, 1st Armoured found Maknassy free of enemy troops. Deploying for a prepared assault of the heights, in view of their orders, a new request for strong thrust to the east found the armour scattered across the Maknassy plains. The assault went in, but the Germans had time to rally, and the attack had little affect. The heights were to be not to be captured until the Germans pulled out on 10th April. The 1st Infantry Division started their assault with a surprise attack during the night of 20/21st by the ranger battalion and the 26th RCT, leading to the capture of Bou Hamran. Reshuffling of RCT's followed preparatory to an assault on Dj el Mecheltat, but by this time the German 10th Panzer Division had arrived and started a counter-attack. One tank-destroyer battalion sacrificed itself to stall and then halt the German attack, and for the next few days a battle of attrition ensued. On the 25th, the 9th Infantry was released from reserve, and, along with a task force from 1st Armoured, renewed the assault from El Guettar in an attempt to take Dj Berda. Unfortunately, the 9th had not fought as a Division before. One battalion got caught in a crossfire and had a whole company wiped out, one battalion got lost and two battalions attacked the wrong hill. The attack failed. Reorganising on the 30th, it again assaulted Dj Berda and also Dj Kreroua. The 1st Infantry also managed to clear Dj el Mecheltat at this time. The 9th, however, was again repulsed. Several more attempts were made to break the German lines, but elements of the 21st Panzer Division had reinforced the German lines. The battle was reduced to a meat-grinder until the Germans finally pulled out on 7th April. This is the long est scenario in the package, running for 19 days. The ground scale is 3.2 kms (2 miles) to the hex. The mountain ranges will channel the movement of units. PLAYER'S NOTES ALLIED. Gafsa is your immediate objective, and you should take its as soon as possible to maximise victory points from it. The Axis shouldn't oppose you here, but if so destruction of such opposition is vital. This will in part offset the loss of points for Gafsa but, more importantly, will deny the Axis player troops to garrison his fort line. Any gaps in the defence should be exploited vigorously as an early breakthrough in this area will probably guarantee you victory. If held up (as was the case historically) you must take extra care with the rotation of your regimental attacks. When the 9th Division arrives you will have a bit more flexibility as to where you will make your push, but from this point on pressure must be continually applied to the defences to force a breakthrough. The 1st Armoured must push very hard right from the start. The quicker pressure is applied to Maknassy, Maizila Pass and Dj Rouana the better, as this will draw off reinforcements from the E l Guettar sector. Each reinforcement drawn off will greatly improve the chances of the 1st and 9th Infantry in the south. Success in this area is probably the key to the game for the Americans. Try and take the other objectives in the Maknassy plains area en-passant, and if you get a chance to infiltrate through the mountains, do so. AXIS. In the north, the 1st Armoured will probably wipe out the initial resistance. The longer you can delay the advance, the better. You are not likely to get lucky and have the historical rainstorm to slow the Americans down. The main objective in the north is to deny Dj Rouana to the Americans, and, where possible mount pressure on Maknassy and Maizila Pass. If you are fortunate enough to retain these objectives for some time from the start of the game, you should have a good chance at winning. In the south try and hold around El Guettar as long as possible, but be prepared to trade some ground. Your main defensive fort line should be used to grind the 1st Infantry into the ground. When the 10th Panzer Division puts in an appearance be careful not to over-extend it. Limit counter-attacks to a specific objective (hopefully El Guettar). Depending on the situation in the north you may have to dispatch reinforcements to the Maknassy area. Such reinforcements generally mean that an Ameri can victory is in the offering, as a strong end-game in the El Guettar and Dj Berda area are necessary for an Axis victory. SCENARIO VARIANT (a) Shorten the game length to 10 days. This represents the first phase of the battle up until the commitment of the 9th. Give the Allies a major handicap. INTERLUDE While the American II Corps was making steady progress towards Maknassy, to the east, Montgomery was having his own supply problems on the Mareth line. 8. TEBOURGA GAP March 26th, 1943 By March 1943, the Desert Fox was at last being run to ground. After five months of steady retreat from El Alamein, the Afrika Korps crossed into Tunisia. With the advance of General Anderson's First Army from Algiers cutting off any further retreat, the time had come to make a stand against Montgomery's Eighth Army. As may be expected, Rommel chose the best position available, an old French fort line at Mareth. A set piece assault by the 50th Infantry Division failed to pierce the line. Montgomery therefore chose to outflank the position via Tebourga Gap, a pass through the Matama Hills located about 100 kms behind the German front line. A successful assault here meant that the Afrika Korps could be cut off and captured. It took the Allies several days to get their troops into position. The plan was for the 2nd New Zealand Division to capture the pass, allowing the 2nd Armoured Division to charge through to the coast. The assault commenced in the afternoon of the 26th March 1943 and i nitially went more or less to plan, the New Zealanders cutting through the weak Axis defence easily except at Point 209 where a battalion of the German 164th Infantry Division held out to the bitter end. By dawn of the 27th the 2nd Armoured Division was through the gap, but a desperate mobile defence by the 21st Panzer and 164th Infantry Divisions ensured that their progress was not the procession it was meant to be. Further fighting on the 28th saw the attackers advance to Point 212 where the Axis managed to put up a sufficient line to stop further Allied progress. A renewed Allied attack on the 29th punched into empty space - the Germans had left their positions on the Mareth Line and were now out of the trap. The Desert Fox had escaped again. This is a short game; only 10 turns! It commences on the pm turn of 26th March and continues until 28th March, by which time the 2nd Armoured Division had to have captured El Hamma or the plan failed. The scale is 1.6 km (1 mile) to the hex. PLAYER'S NOTES COMMONWEALTH. Your plan is simple; El Hamma or bust! You must attack to the best of your ability and clear the pass quickly to allow 2nd Armoured through. For once you do not have to worry about exhaustion as your men do not have to last long; so attack day and night. The recipe is a quick assault using maximum armour and artillery to blast away the defenders, a furious pursuit by the 2nd Armoured and a bit of luck. And be careful with your infantry, Roger does not like to see his countrymen, the New Zealanders, getting roughed up! AXIS. The German role is probably best left to the computer, who does not have anyone to complain to. However, if you do get past the first three turns with your front blown away and your few remaining units desperately trying to hold back a flood of rampaging tanks, take heart; the Allies have a lot of ground to cover and precious little time to do it in. You must use your units to establish blocking positions along the Allied axis of advance. Remember the key victory condition is possession of El Hamma at the end of the game. All else is secondary. SCENARIO VARIANTS (a) The British 2nd Armoured Division arrived the night of the first day of the battle and did not really get into action until the morning of the 27th. Assume it had arrived earlier and set the arrival for all its units to turn 1. (b) The New Zealanders had managed to capture Point 184 in an assault on the previous day (hence the weakened condition of the 21st battalion) which permitted them to form up fairly close to the Axis front line. Assume this feature had not been captured in advance and position all Allied units two hexes closer to the bottom of the map. Those units "pushed off the map" by this device should start on the bottom hexrow arriving on turn 1. AFTERMATH Battered but not yet beaten, the Axis forces struggled back to a defensive perimeter around the port of Tunis. By April 1943, Axis naval convoys were under such pressure that they could not be continued. Only a tenuous link, via air transport, connected German forces to Europe. Allied training continued apace and in early May, a series of sharp offensives tore the heart from 5th Panzerarmee. On the 11th, the last of Hitler's legions in Africa surrendered. The battle for North Africa was over... the battle for Italy was about to begin. Irwin Rommel did not return to active duty until 1944 when he was placed in command of the German forces in France which would oppose the impending Allied invasion. He saw little service in this command. After the abortive "July Bomb Plot" against Hitler, his tenuous connection to it was sufficient for him to be classed as a conspirator. He died by his own hand to prevent the persecution of his family. -------------------------------------------------------------------- HALLS OF MONTEZUMA SCENARIOS Strategic Studies Group (SSG) -------------------------------------------------------------------- 1. Your First Battle It is September 13th, 1847. Ten thousand men under General Winfield Scott are about to assault Mexico City. Not many Marines are present but it's quality, not quantity, that counts. Your task is to use these men to crush resistance at Chapultepec, move swiftly along both causeways to capture the gates to the city and then strike for the Halls of the Montezumas. Following these tutorial instructions will get you started. We recommend that you refer to the Game Manual for further details about the various game mechanics. As well as this tutorial, you'll need to have the game map in front of you and to have located the appropriate area for the Mexico City scenario. Keep the Game Manual handy. Use the reference card appropriate for your computer. 2. Starting Up Open the Mexico City scenario from the scenario folder. Colour Mac users should select the Mexico City (c) scenario; monochrome Mac users should select the Mexico City (b&w) scenario. The game preparation screen will appear and three choices have to be made for each side. The Mexicans are going to be commanded by the computer so click in the radio button below the Mexican headquarter description. Do not make the Mexicans enhanced. The Americans will be under human control (that's you) and you can select enhanced if you wish to be absolutely sure of winning your first game. Go to the Environment menu and select Play from it. 3. Reviewing Your Forces The game map opens and to the right of it is the Command Window. All of your orders are issued through the Command Window. The picture in the top left corner tells you the current weather while the time of day, the date, the weather forecast and the extent of any air superiority is displayed to the right of the picture. Before issuing orders we'll review our forces, examine the battlefield, the objectives and the enemy forces. The display menu contains seven items. The five items above the line are on-off switches. The Objective switch will reveal/hide the location of the objectives assigned to your forces. Holding the mouse button down while the cursor is positioned over an objective will tell you its name, which turns it is active, how many victory points (VPs) you earn for capturing it and how many turns to date you have held it. Objectives which have been assigned to the division currently displayed in the Command Window will be identified by a flashing star icon instead of the cro ss-hair icon. The Minefields switch will reveal friendly minefield hexes. There are none of these in the scenario. The Control switch will reveal the exact location of the front line. Knowing which hexes are under friendly control is very important for maintaining supply lines. The Arrival Hex switch will tell you where reinforcements are scheduled to arrive. The Units switch will temporarily remove units from the map to allow you to examine the battlefield. The two items below the line are reports. The VP Report presents a breakdown of the situation to date. It tells you the result if the game were to end at this point. The Objectives Report summarises the details of all your objectives in a single table. Clicking on an objective in the table will centre the map on that objective. Whenever the cursor is positioned on the map and the mouse held down, you will be told the type of terrain in the hex and who controls it. If friendly or enemy units are in the hex, you will be given details about them. 4. Issuing Orders Back to the Command Window. There are three buttons below the weather picture which correspond to the three American divisions. When the window opens, the first of these divisions (Pillow's) is displayed. Below these buttons you are told the condition of Pillow's division. A single click in a division button will select that division. A double click in a division button will open up the dialog box which contains the division's asset battalions. Pillow's division has three asset units; one cavalry and two artillery. These units may be assigned to any regiment from the division on a turn by turn basis. Similarly, there are four regimental buttons, although only three of them are active in this scenario because Pillow's division has only three regiments. The information panel to the right of the buttons displays information about the high-lighted regiment. At the bottom of the Command Window is a palette of 12 orders which can be issued. Not all of them will be available at any one time. Reading from left to right and from top to bottom the orders are Reserve, Objective, Enemy Unit, Deploy, Defend, Delay, Support, Prepare, Probe, Assault, Exploit and Wake Up (used only at night). Click in the top regimental button. This is Caldwalader's regiment. Its current order is defend. You can confirm this by holding down the mouse over the order icon and a small dialog box will open up to identify it. The regimental information tells us the regiment is ENGAGED and this defines which orders are available to us. The enemy target unit is high-lighted on the game map. Give this regiment a Probe order by clicking on the Probe icon from the Orders palette. It's 1847 so there isn't any air support available. Similarly, give a Reserve order to the second regiment (Clarke)) and a probe order to the third regiment (Garland). Now go to the second division (Quitman) and issue prepare orders to both regiments (P. Smith and Shields). Double click on Quitman's division HQ button. There are fou r asset battalions available; one marine, one engineer and two artillery. Both artillery battalions are assigned to P. Smith's regiment. Click on the 4th battalion (Hug), then click on the second regimental HQ button. This action will transfer the artillery battalion from P. Smith's regiment to Shields' regiment. During the game it is vital to continually monitor your asset battalions. Switch them to whichever regiment needs them the most. When losses mount and/or the asset becomes fatigued, place in it reserve (i.e. click on the reserve button instead of a regimental HQ button). The third division (Twigg) has no movement points (static) and not much of a job. They must stay where they are, but the Mexicans will probably come visiting anyway. 5. The First Turn Reviewed We have issued probe orders to Caldwalader's and Garland's regiments from Pillow's division, and prepare orders to P. Smith's and Shields' regiments from Quitman's division. We have examined all the troops in our command and switched a divisional asset in Quitman's division. Now it's time to fight. Go to the Play menu and select Run 5 from it. 6. The Computer's Role Combat and movement will then occur. The Mexicans will not attack you on this first turn, so you will get a combat report from each of your attacks. Click the OK button to continue after each report. After the first turn is finished you will be returned to the Combat Window. 7. The Game Plan War being what it is, it is not exactly possible to tell what may have happened by now. The defenders of Chapultepec may have routed or they may still be there. If they are, use the Assault order for both regiments from Quitman's division. This will certainly finish them off. If they have already retired from the field there will be no shortage of replacements which will stream out from Mexico City along the causeway on the first turn. Quitman's division has the task of removing these obstacles and capturing the Belen Gate. Keep pushing forward. Use the Probe order to concentrate your men if you are only in CONTACT, and then the Prepare order followed by the Assault order when you are ENGAGED with the enemy. Pillow's division must lend a hand on the first day, to clear Chapultepec and the road junction it commands. Sometime on the second day you should have pushed the Mexicans back far enough to allow you to swing north and take the San Cosme gate. To do this you will have to be in the READY state; i.e. not in CONTACT or ENGAGED. Use the Reserve order if necessary to withdraw from contact. Don't do this until the Mexicans are at least four hexes from the road junction otherwise you will just get caught up in the fighting. The battlefield narrows towards the causeway anyway, so there won't be the room to fight. Once you have taken San Cosme Gate, press on to the Halls of the Montezumas. Twigg's division has an unenviable job. Unable to move, all he can do is fight any Mexicans who come his way. Conserve your efforts and you should outlast your attackers, who should soon have other problems. 8. Tactics Some brief points to help you on your way. These remarks are amplified in the game manual. Your men are superior to the Mexicans and should win any contest of arms. Don't get carried away and assault more than once a day. Too many assaults result in exhausted men who have run out of supplies, so watch your supply and fatigue status. PART TWO THE SCENARIOS 1. MEXICO CITY September 13th, 1847 "I knew I could not be wrong, so long as the enemy in large numbers were ahead" Captain George H. Terret "I believe if we were to plant our batteries in hell the Yankees would take them from us" Santa Anna, after the fall of Chapultepec "God is a Yankee" was his Chief of Staff's reply The assault on Mexico City was the culmination of a three year war between the USA and Mexico. The proximate cause of the war was the election of James K. Polk to the presidency in 1844, on an expansionist platform. At this time Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and California belonged to Mexico, but the resident American whites were keen to join the United States of America. The war started in April 1846, and the US Navy quickly blockaded all major ports on both coasts of Mexico, which had no navy to speak of. At this time the marines were an integral part of the navy, and their main task was to guard ships and ports. They numbered about 1,000 men. The Navy, aided by the Americans already in California, eventually conquered San Francisco, Los Angeles and San Diego, securing the future state. The next step was to i nvade Mexico and force it to peace. Major General Winfield Scott commanded the American Army in this incursion. He was persuaded by Henderson to include Marines in the invasion force, since they were a permanent trained force, and many of Scott's volunteers had served their time and returned home. When the Army reached Mexico City on the August 8th, 1847, the Marines were disgusted at having been used to guard the supply trains, thus missing the battles (such as they were) so far. The battalion of 357 men was commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Samuel E. Watson, and was attached to the division of Brigadier General John A. Quitman. Scott's Army numbered 10,738 men, and faced a Mexican army of about 32,000 commanded by the self-styled Napoleon of the Americas, Santa Anna. The Mexicans were massed south of the city (the direction from which the Americans were approaching), so Scott decided to attack from the west. On 7th of September he used Brigadier General William J. Worth's division to a ssault a group of heavy stone buildings called Molino del Ray, which guarded the western approaches and were resolutely defended by the Mexicans. They took it, but ruined the division in doing so. On Monday, September 13th the attack proper started. The first and main obstacle was Chapultepec, a steep hill surrounded by walls. It was defended by about 900 soldiers and a handful of cadets - known ever afterwards to Mexicans as the Niõos Heroicos. Quitman's division was assigned the difficult south face, as a diversion from the main attack by Brigadier General Gideon Pillow's division up the west face. To the east of the hill, the Mexicans had garrisoned a vital road junction with a battery of artillery and some entrenched infantry. The attack was a success. Special storming parties, including some Marines, were formed and equipped with ladders and pick-axes. These were to take the lower walls while the bulk of each division provided covering fire. They were quickly pinned down under the intense crossfire from the walls and from the force at the road junction. Then, by sheer persistence the pioneers of Pillow's division won the walls, and the brigade on the right flank cleared the road junction. The bulk of both divisions, including some Marines, swept up the hill and captured the fortress. Captain George H. Terret took his company of about 30 Marines and raced up the western causeway towards the San Cosme gate, the last defended position before Mexico City proper. Joined by one Ulysses S. Grant and about 20 men, they stopped a counter-attack by some Mexican lancers, then routed a force of over 1,000 enemy foot en route. Heavily outnumbered, they assaulted and took the gate against determined resistance, becoming the first troops to set foot in Mexico City itself. They had far outrun the rest of the Army, and were forced to return to the road junction. This gate was eventually re-taken by Worth's division that evening. The rest of the Marines, with Quitman's division, advanced along the eastern causeway and established themselves inside the Bel„n gate before nightfall, after a fierce fight. The Mexicans counter-attacked several times, but could not press home against the American artillery and musketry. Overnight the city fathers persuaded Santa Anna to abandon the city to prevent damage to the buildings and civilian population. By morning the Americans discovered that the Mexicans had withdrawn and abandoned the city out of consideration for the populace, and the low morale of the Mexican army and its commanders. Up until this time the Marine standard had borne the motto: "To the Shores of Tripoli". On their return to Washington the people of that city presented the Marines with a new banner and a new motto: "From Tripoli to the Halls of the Montezumas". Thus a piece of Marine Corps history was born. SCENARIO NOTES Because this battle is somewhat outside the time period that the Battlefront Game System is designed to cover, the time scale has been expanded. Historically all the action took place in one day, but this scenario is four days long with each day representing one normal turn. This allows the numerous small skirmishes that happened to still occur while giving the Americans time to get to their objective, the Halls of Montezuma. The scenario as created departs from history to add interest to both sides. The assumption is that the Mexicans stood and fought for their city on the second day rather than evacuating it. The Mexicans now have a chance to conduct a limited offensive in the southeast of the map, possibly spoiling the US attack in the centre. The research for this game was the most difficult yet, and the Mexican OB is necessarily substantially guess-work. The names of the units are real ones, but further hard information is limited. While not as challenging as the other scenarios, Mexico City is nevertheless of historical interest and a good learning scenario. PLAYER'S NOTES THE MARINES. You must make the running. Assault Chapultepec defenders and their supporting units with everything possible until they are eliminated, as they block your way to the city. Then advance along both causeways towards Mexico City. Pillow's division should take Belen Gate and Quitman's division the San Cosme Gate. After that you will have some street fighting in Mexico City. You will have to fight your way through a fair few units to be able to take the Halls in time. MEXICAN FORCES. There is only a limited amount you can do to affect the game. Make an immediate and swift advance down to the objectives at the south of the board, and try to capture one of them. You will have to attack very carefully, as your offensive capability is small. Be prepared to run back to the city as soon as the US approach the Belen Gate. SCENARIO VARIANTS (1) Assume the Americans had launched their attack from the south, their direction of approach. Move all US units to the southern board edge east of the swamp. (2) Assume the Americans had suffered more disease and supply difficulties (as they might well have done). Reduce all US admin and supplies to 2. 2. BELLEAU WOOD May 28th - June 18th, 1918 "Retreat, hell. We just got here!" Captain Lloyd Williams, USMC 1918 was the decisive year of World War I. The Russians had surrendered in 1917, and huge numbers of Germans were transferred to the western front. The German commanders had decided to try to end the war before the new American divisions could arrive in numbers. Their massive offensives of March-May 1918 threw the Allies reeling back towards Paris, and once again the French government made plans to evacuate the city. The US 3rd division played a vital part in stopping their drive at Chteau-Thierry. The Germans wheeled right at this check, moving along the Marne instead of trying to cross it. This brought them to the area of Belleau Wood, from which they ejected the dispirited French in the last days of May. The 4th Marine Brigade, made up of the 5th and 6th Marine Regiments, was part of the 2nd US division. They were holding a line from the Paris-Metz highway on the right, through Lucy-le-Bocage, to Hill 142 on the left. On June 3rd, the Germans continued their attack towards Paris, a dvancing from the Wood towards Lucy-le-Bocage, the centre of the Marine line. The well-trained Marines held their ground and shot the German attack to a standstill. This was the climax of the German advance. The Germans knew that their advance on Paris was finished, so they dug in inside the woods and waited. The Marines were not to disappoint them. Early on June 6th, 26 years before D-Day, the Marines went in to the attack. Their inexperience was to cost them dear: they had failed to send out patrols to gauge the defence, and had believed the French reports of no enemy troops in the woods. The woods had in fact been converted into a mini-fortress, with barbed wire and a network of interlocking machine-gun nests, and manned by an experienced regiment of Germans. The epic battle of Hill 142 went on all day. At one point the Marines nearly took Torcy, at another they nearly lost the hill itself. But by 5 pm, the appointed hour of the main assault, they held the hill, depleted but firm. T here was no pre-assault artillery bombardment, as this was to be a surprise attack - but the Germans were expecting them. As Sergeant Dan Daly started to lead his men into the withering fire from the woods, he turned to them and exhorted: "Come on, you sons-o'-bitches! Do you want to live for ever?". The centre and right of the attack did somewhat better, since they did not have to cross such expanses of open ground as did the left. One platoon in the centre actually managed to fight their way through the Wood, only to be cut down as they emerged into the open. The right flank's task was to capture Bouresches, to anchor that flank of the main assault. Twenty three men, the remnants of one company took and held the town for half an hour against counter-attacks until reinforcements arrived. By the end of the day the 4th Marine Brigade had taken 1,087 casualties (about 60% of its infantry strength), more than in their entire history up to that point. The following day, June 7th, was a day of rest for the Marines. Disorganised, with many small units shattered, it was all they could do to hold their ground and feed in reinforcements and ammunition. The Germans put in an attack at around midnight but were stopped cold. At 4 am on June 8th, the Marines of the 3/6th Battalion were ordered out of their foxholes again. After 6 hours of heavy fighting with no perceptible result, the attack was called off and the battalion withdrawn from combat. The German defence had again been underestimated. June 9th was spent in an enormous artillery duel, with the Americans and French raking the woods from end to end, and the Germans shelling Lucy-le-Bocage and Bouresches and the ground between. On the next day, June 10th, 1/6th Battalion advanced up the long axis of the Wood from the south, while 2/5th Battalion attacked from the west across the deadly wheat fields. The two units were able to link up, but, due to exhaustion and casualties, were unable to further dent the Germans' determin ed defence. The following day saw the 2/5th Battalion advancing, so they thought, north east through the woods. Taking heavy casualties, they struggled in platoons and companies through the dense forest. When they emerged from the cover of the trees, they reported back that they had taken the north of Belleau Wood. Unfortunately, they had been travelling west, and had merely crossed the Wood at 90î to the defensive lines. They had accidentally rolled up much of the Germans' southern defence line, but exposed their left flank to the remaining Germans. General Pershing had already announced to the world that the Marines had taken Belleau Wood, so the local commanders set about making that news true. The Germans were prepared because the preliminary bombardment had overshot by 1000 yards, leaving the front line undamaged. The Germans fought back with everything, including mustard gas. Despite the fierce combat, the eastern half of the Wood was captured by the Marines that day. Due to the mix up in position, the 1/5th and 2/6th Battalions, coming to relieve the 2/5th, found the west of the Wood full of Germans. Finally, on the morning of the 15th, the Marines were able to get a toe-hold in the western side of the woods. Gas had caused so many casualties by now that the whole 4th Marine Brigade was judged unbattleworthy, and was relieved by the US 7th infantry, who failed to make any headway in the next week. To break the log-jam, the 3/5th Marines Battalion was brought back to 'clear' the northern part of the woods -resistance still being reckoned to be light. The Germans had manned their line with three fresh battalions, to hold the remainder of the Wood. The attack quickly ground to a bloody halt. The whole of the Marine Brigade was now recalled for action. At 5 pm on the 25th June an attack went in, after a proper all-day bombardment. The attack was spearheaded by the 3/5th Battalion, with the now-veteran 2/5th and 3/6th Battalions on the flanks. The attackers took h eavy casualties, but the artillery preparation had knocked out many enemy machine-guns, and they were running out of reinforcements. On the morning of June 26th, men of the 3/5th Battalion finally reached the northern edge of the Wood, and were able to signal "Woods now US Marine Corps entirely". The cost was 1062 killed and 4121 wounded Marines. The defence by the Marines saved Paris and removed the last German chance to win the war. SCENARIO NOTES The scenario begins when the first German attacks hit the French forces in front of the Wood on the 28th of May, and continues for 87 turns until the Marine Brigade is withdrawn for refit on the 18th of June. The French division is made brittle to simulate the forced withdrawal it made on about the 1st of June. By this time the Germans should have occupied the Wood and Hill 142. PLAYER'S NOTES THE MARINES (AND SOME FRENCH). You must first conduct a careful defence with your fragile French troops. As soon as a regiment approaches its brittleness rating, withdraw it. You can often stop the Germans advancing beyond the Wood until the US troops arrive. With the US troops in hand you must make continual assault on the Germans in and around the Wood, where the victory points are. You have good admin and supply values, so your damaged units will recover quickly. You must, as always, rotate your units as they get tired or low on supplies. GERMAN FORCES. You must quickly establish yourself in defensive positions as far forward as possible. If you can disrupt the Americans as they come on the board, so much the better. Your divisional admin and supply values are not good, so do not indulge in frequent counter-attacks. SCENARIO VARIANTS (1) Assume the French make a good stand here. Remove the brittleness flag and increase their divisional admin and supply values to 4. This will unbalance the game severely, so _ (2) Assume the Germans had got their logistics as well organised as their tactics. Increase their divisional admin and supply to 5 each. (3) Assume that the Wood had not exercised its powers of fascination over the Allied commanders. Delete both objectives for both sides within the Wood, as well as the two adjacent hills. 3. IWO JIMA February 19th - March 6th, 1945 "Uncommon valour was a common virtue" Admiral Chester A. Nimitz Operation Detachment, the plan to capture the island of Iwo Jima in February 1945, was a vital part of the American strategy of island-hopping their way to Japan. Possession of Iwo Jima and its two airfields (with a third under construction) would cut the Japanese links with the huge expanses of ocean that they still controlled. It would also enable the air force to escort the B29s now bombing Japan from the Marianas Islands. It was thus an obvious target - a fact which was itself obvious to the Japanese. The Japanese armed forces had suffered an almost unbroken string of defeats for over two years. Even their prepared defences of islands had resulted in far more casualties for themselves than for the attackers. They looked to change this with a range of new tactics. Gone would be the reliance on fanatical banzai charges to decide the issue. They had proved wasteful of manpower, and had not succeeded in a single instance, close though they were to the heart of the Japanese warrior. Iwo Jima was to be fortified to the limit. The island consisted of the relatively small Mount Suribachi in the south, and the larger Motoyama Plateau in the north (supporting the airfields), connected by a plain of volcanic sand. This sand would cause great problems for the Marines, as it was too soft to dig in properly, and virtually prevented running. "Like trying to fight in a bin of loose wheat" was the comment of the 4th Division's official history. Both elevated areas were naturally endowed with hundreds of caves, which the Japanese augmented and interconnected with kilometres of tunnels. Thousands of concrete emplacements were built, and the Japanese spread their supplies, ammunition, and 21,000 men over many sites so that they would not all be destroyed or captured at once. The American plan for the invasion was simple. They would use two Divisions of Marines for the main invasion, the 4th and 5th, and hold the 3rd in reserve to be committed if necessary. The only possible landing place was the eastern shore of the volcanic plain, where eight Battalions would alight on the first day. This meant that there was inevitably going to be incredible congestion on the first day, no matter how well the landing went, with over 50,000 men packed into 2 square miles of open plain - the Japanese gunners would find it difficult to miss. The Americans had also taken account of their experiences in previous invasions. Each Battalion now had an assault platoon attached, equipped with flamethrowers, bazookas and satchel charges. The tank Battalion increased their numbers of flamethrower tanks. A two day bombardment from hundreds of warships would take care of the surface defences. The landings occurred in the early morning of February 19th, 1945. The Japanese held their fire until the Marines stepped ashore from their am-tracks, then let loose with artillery and mortar fire in an intensity unequalled in the Marines' history. The two Divisions making the initial assault suffered 2,300 casualties in the first day, taking an area only half that of the first day objectives. The Marines scooped shallow foxholes in the volcanic sand and waited for the usual counter-attack _ which never arrived. Few Marines had even seen a live Japanese soldier so far, and no prisoners were taken. The next few days were spent in cutting across the island, and working through the preliminary defences at the base of the Motoyama Plateau, including the first airfield. At this stage the 4th Division held the left flank and the 5th Division the right. Most of the 3rd Division was soon committed to the fight in the central front, as units ran low on men and officers. February 23rd (D+4) saw the historic capture of Mt Suribachi by the 28/5th Regiment, with the famous flag-raising under fire. The Secretary of the Navy, James V. Forrestal, witnessed this from off-shore, and said to the Marines' commander, Holland Smith,: "The raising of that flag on Suribachi means that there will be a Marin e Corps for the next 500 years". Smith turned to an aide and whispered "When the war is over and money is short they will be after the Marines again, and a dozen Iwo Jimas would make no difference". How right he was. The Japanese defenders fought with their typical dogged skill, not giving ground where unnecessary, not expending themselves uselessly in counter-attacks, using the terrain and their superb spotting positions on the top of the Motoyama Plateau to the best advantage. Often they would let the Marines advance past a hidden position, then open fire from the rear. There seemed to be no front line on the island; areas that were thought to have been 'secured' had to be cleared and cleared again before they were safe. The island campaign would not be over until March 16th, as the exhausted Marine Divisions slowly eliminated the pockets of resistance in the north of the island. The Japanese garrison had, in the main, died in place as ordered. The 21,000 defenders had caused 28,500 casualties to the attackers; the first time in the Pacific campaign that the Japanese had inflicted more casualties than they had taken. SCENARIO NOTES The whole island of Iwo Jima was covered by Japanese defensive works. To simulate this all terrain is more resistant to attack, especially by artillery, than would otherwise be the case. To allow for the exposed and crowded US positions along with the well prepared Japanese artillery, all Japanese artillery ratings and strengths have been increased. The Japanese units with zero movement allowance represent the fact many units, while forbidden suicide attacks, had no qualms about suicide defence. Many expected to die in place. The original game in this series, Battlefront, included a scenario on the Marine invasion of Saipan in 1944 and Issue 3 of Run 5 included a scenario on the Guadalcanal campaign. PLAYER'S NOTES THE MARINES. Your only task at first will be to win a beach-head large enough to deploy your troops. The 5th Division must head for the West Coast and also contain Mt Suribachi. The 4th Division must capture Airfield 1. Be prepared for some high casualties in doing so, especially from minefields. The 5th must then clear Mt Suribachi. When you have the necessary room you can rest, reorganise and then drive north. The 5th should drive along the western coast to Hill 362a and Hill 362b. The 4th must clear the Amphitheatre before assaulting Hill 362c. When it arrives, the 3rd can assist in the south if necessary, before striking up the heart of the island for Airfield 2 and Motoyama. While you have excellent troops, they must be carefully managed to ensure victory. KIA'd units, especially armour will be expensive in victory points. The US has large numbers of OBS points during the day. These are necessary for a successful attack but can also be used to repulse the expected Japanese attacks on weakened units. JAPANESE FORCES. Your job is to hold on to key terrain features and delay the US advance as long as possible. Your artillery units can give you an edge in attack if allocated carefully. Attacks at night will be most effective due to the absence of the overwhelming US OBS. Attacks in bad weather should be considered for the same reason. Attacks should only be made against US units in bad shape. Units who have spent some time in minefields are obvious candidates. Your men will be most effective in their forts, so these should not be abandoned lightly. If you can keep the US player off balance and unable to concentrate his power you can win. The 109th Division has responsibility for the defence of the North, with the 2nd Brigade and the Navy defending the Amphitheatre and Turkey Knob respectively. SCENARIO VARIANTS (1) The 3rd RCT of the 3rd Marine Division remained in reserve and were not committed at Iwo Jima. Assume that they were used and land them after the 9th RCT. Model them on the 9th RCT but make the three infantry battalions strength 12 and the artillery unit strength 4. (2) The D-Day weather for Iwo Jima was excellent, with very light seas. Assume that the weather deteriorated, hampering supply operations. Reduce the Supply value by 2 and the admin value by 1 for all regimental HQs of the 4th and 5th Divisions. (3) Assume that the preliminary bombardment had been more effective. Remove three forts of the US player's choice. 4. OKINAWA - THE SHURI LINE May 10th - 22nd, 1945 "You cannot by-pass a Jap because a Jap does not know when he is by-passed" A Colonel of the 96th US Infantry Division Two weeks after the campaign on Iwo Jima was officially over Operation Iceberg, the invasion of Okinawa, began. The decision to take Okinawa was made at the same time as that for Iwo Jima, and for much the same reasons. The Americans thought they knew what to expect after the Iwo Jima campaign. A fanatical defence of position after position, each having to be winkled out by flamethrowers, demolition charges, and sometimes even direct fire from 14" naval guns. There were known to be around 100,000 defenders on the island, good quality troops in the main, well supplied with artillery and automatic weapons. The Japanese planned to defend the southern third of the island as they had the northern part of Iwo Jima - tunnels, caves, concrete emplacements and a strict ban on vain suicide attacks. This part of the island contained the best defensive terrain, as well as four air-bases, the port of Naha, and the best beaches and anchorages. The rest of the island would be covered by delaying forc es, and left to the acknowledged US superiority in air and sea power. The defenders included the crack and experienced 62nd Division, the green 24th Division and the 44th Mixed Brigade, as well as numerous independent small units, including 10,000 naval troops, the elite 5th Artillery Command, the 27th Tank regiment and 20,000 native Okinawans (Boetai ). The Americans hit the island with everything they had. Carrier planes and B29s bombed airfields in Formosa, Japan and other nearby islands to suppress Japanese raids and kamikaze missions; a full week was spent pounding the island from sea and air. The invasion force consisted of the 7th, 27th, 77th and 96th Infantry Divisions, and the 1st, 2nd and 6th Marine Divisions, accompanied by 1,500 ships of all types. The landings began on April 1st and initially went well. The Japanese had chosen not to contest the beaches. The 1st Marines landed and were held in place to act as the local reserve. The 6th Marines were given the task of cleari ng the north of the island, as they were not as experienced as the other Marine divisions. The 2nd Marine Division performed a landing feint near the south eastern corner of the island to pin Japanese reserves. On the 6th of April the gigantic battleship Yamato, the pride of the IJN, sailed on a one-way mission to interdict the US Navy off Okinawa. The Allied air forces had kept an eye on her, and detected the movement straightaway. Within 24 hours, she joined her cousins on the sea bottom. But she had done some good: the distraction allowed a huge aerial kamikaze attack to achieve unprecedented success. An air armada of 700 planes, over half kamikazes, struck the US fleet. Six ships were sunk and seventeen damaged. If this rate of success was continued, the kamikazes had a real chance of delaying or even stopping the Allies at Okinawa. It took until April 8th for the two Army divisions to work their way through the scattered defenders and outposts up to the main Japanese defensive lin e along Kakazu ridge, one of a series of rugged terrain features that ran directly across the US line of advance. These defences were part of the first Shuri defence ring, a fortified line extending across the island through the town of Shuri, which was an ancient castle and the centre of the defences. By April 12th, the defenders had brought the Americans to a standstill. The men would work their way up a hill through artillery, mortar and machine-gun fire, take the crest, and then be pinned down or driven back by the main Japanese position on the reverse face of the slope, almost immune from indirect fire. The 'blowtorch and corkscrew' tactics developed by the Americans, referring to the use of flamethrowers followed by demolition charges, were needed at almost every step. Often the defenders of a position were entombed alive and by-passed, only to appear elsewhere having escaped through a tunnel. The Japanese command was divided between the cautious realists, led by the highly compe tent General Ushijima, and the 'fire-eaters', the junior and less experienced officers. Encouraged by the course of the battle thus far, Ushijima gave the fire-eaters their way on April 12th, and put in a six battalion attack that night. The Americans had decoded the signal flares using a captured signal book, and were prepared. By the light of star shells from the ships off-shore, US firepower blew the attack apart before it could get going. Still the Japanese persisted until the 14th, when Ushijima finally put an end to the slaughter. It was a return to the worst of Japanese tactics, relieved only by the lack of the suicidal and unproductive banzai charges. Lt. General Buckner, Tenth Army commander, decided on a large frontal attack to crack the tenacious defensive line. On April 19th all three front line divisions ( XXIV Corps) went over to the offensive. The preliminary bombardment was ferocious. Over 600 planes, 18 warships and 300 guns opened up. The net result was estimated late r to be about 200 Japanese dead. The defenders reappeared from their tunnels when the barrage stopped, and halted the advance in its tracks. The longest gain was around one kilometre in the west; many units ended the day on their start lines. The 2nd Marine Division was again used for a landing feint to distract the defenders, who were in fact expecting another landing. In one of the most unfortunate decisions of the campaign, the experienced 2nd Marines were then sent back to Saipan, not having seen action on Okinawa at all. But the strain told on the defenders. Every gun, man or position lost could never be replaced. Slowly the Japanese were forced back by the unrelenting pressure. On the night of April 23rd/24th, the Japanese fell back to their second line. After a month of combat, the US Tenth Army was in trouble. Three infantry divisions, the 7th, 27th and 96th, had attacked for all they were worth against the first Japanese defensive line for three weeks and had taken more casual ties than metres of ground. There were two alternatives available to Buckner at this point: he could use his reserves (1st and 6th Marine and 77th Infantry Divisions) to replace his exhausted front line units, or he could make another landing behind the Japanese defensive lines. Buckner chose the first course for two main reasons: he was in a hurry, and organising another invasion would mean two weeks of delay; and he feared "another Anzio, but worse". The 27th and 96th Divisions were pulled out on the April 30th and replaced by the 1st Marine and 77th Divisions respectively. The 7th had to wait another 10 days until the 96th was ready to return. At first the fresh troops made little difference. For a week, the US troops advanced perhaps two kilometres in the centre, and less on the flanks. The Americans had run into the second Shuri line of the defence ring. The men had to go through it all again; the names changed but the tactics remained the same. Ushijima once more allowed himself to be talked into an offensive. Encouraged by the stalemate at the front, he planned an attack for May 4th, to be accompanied by massive kamikaze strikes on the US Navy. The 24th Division, the 27th Tank regiment and the 44th Mixed Brigade were to lead the assault, and miscellaneous small units would make landings behind the American front to disrupt supplies and communications. After a half-hour barrage of over 13,000 rounds, the attack went in early in the morning. The coastal landings were an abysmal failure; most were penned in or destroyed within minutes of debarking. The main assault met the fate of the earlier attack: US firepower rapidly decided the issue. Incredibly, another assault was put in the next night, and actually achieved a small breakthrough. By the next day, the Americans had restored the front and killed all of the successful attackers. The two attacks had cost the Japanese hundreds of planes, 5,000 casualties, almost all their tanks, and 60 precious guns. The US lo sses amounted to six ships sunk, six damaged, and 720 land casualties. The Japanese attack was another expensive failure. By May 11th the refreshed 96th Division was brought back into the line to replace the 7th, and the 6th Marine Division was added to the western flank. Buckner scheduled an all-out attack along the whole line for that day. The Japanese, certain by now that no second landing was coming, committed most of their reserves. The fighting went on, hardly moving, for ten days. At the end of this period, the Japanese line was in danger. Both flanks were bending back, and the Americans were on the outskirts of Shuri in the centre. On the east coast, there was a real possibility of a breakthrough as the US troops opened a gap between the Japanese and the shoreline. At this point the rains, unseasonably late, started. Much of the front became a sea of mud, even stopping am-tracks. The only significant advance was made in the west, where the Marines finally took the town of Naha, largest in Okinawa but virtually deserted now. The Marines also began to outflank Shuri to the south west. The situation looked desperate to General Ushijima, as he had no hope of reinforcement. The only viable option open to him was to abandon the hard-fought-for Shuri line and retreat into the very southern portion of the island, where a last defensive line had been prepared. The Japanese took advantage of the cover afforded by the constant rain to stage their withdrawal, skilfully covered by a rear guard. The withdrawal was complete by May 28th, but the Americans only realised that it had happened at all on the 30th, when a Marine unit slipped through a gap in the rear guard and took Shuri castle. Even then, the town proper held out for another day. When the men finally entered the ruined town, it was deserted. SCENARIO NOTES The scenario begins with reformation of the III Amphibious Corps as the 6th Marines enters the line to the right of the 1st. The resulting bloody struggle for the Shuri line was only stopped by the cyclonic storms that commenced on May 22nd and rendered offensive action impossible. The Japanese defended their positions to the death and withdrew only under the cover of the storms. To simulate this many Japanese units have zero movement allowance. Each side will take heavy losses and if both have held at the end then the issue may be decided by casualties inflicted as well as objectives held. PLAYER'S NOTES THE MARINES. You must conduct a steady and calculated assault on the Shuri line to be successful. Careful co-ordination of assets and OBS is essential. Marine losses will be high but your excellent supply and elite troops should allow you to maintain steady pressure. Watch for any weakening in the Japanese lines and hold try to hold any gains without overreaching. Pushing exhausted troops, even marines, can result in disaster. The 1st Marines' ultimate objective is Shuri Castle, but Dakeshi must be reduced first. The 6th Marines must cross the Asa River and assault the Sugarloaf and Horseshoe hills which dominate the Shuri Line in the 6th Division's sector. These must fall before the Japanese rear areas at Kokuba can be taken. JAPANESE FORCES. Many of your units are dug in and these must form the backbone of your defence. The mobile units you control are essential for shoring up the weak points caused by US assaults. Holding the line is your only aim as in so doing you will have caused heavy losses to the US. Your units will also suffer but you may be certain that the US player is probably suffering in at least equal measure. The Shuri Line must be held. The 44th Independent Brigade is responsible for Sugarloaf, Horseshoe, Hill 55 and Makuba. The Navy is responsible for the Naha area including Makishi, while the 62nd Division defends Wana and Shuri Castle. SCENARIO VARIANTS (1a) Assume that Japanese kamikaze attacks are having a greater than historical effect on US shipping. Reduce divisional and regimental supply values by 2 points. (1b) You can also assume that the US carriers were being somewhat diverted and reduce the reliability of US OBS by 2. (2) Assume that heavy rains which stopped the US offensive arrived earlier. Reduce the scenario length by 4 days. 5. OKINAWA - THE FINAL REDOUBT June 4th - 19th, 1945 "It's all over now but cleaning up pockets of resistance. This doesn't mean there won't be stiff fighting but the Japs won't be able to organise another line" General Buckner, May 31st 1945 By early June, when the rains had subsided, the Americans were advancing faster than ever before. They had come three kilometres in a week - fast by Okinawan standards. They started to by-pass the Oroku peninsula on the west coast, held by the troops of Admiral Ota's naval base force. On June 3rd, two regiments of the 6th Marine made a landing on the northern point of the peninsula. The landing by sea was considered easier than moving the men in the mud. The remainder of the Japanese forces on the island, about 30,000, had retreated to a new line in the south. Only one third of these, however, were trained infantry. The Japanese were running out of men. The support troops fought as bravely as the rest, but not so well. The now-familiar process of prising the defenders out of every nook and cranny in the convoluted hills continued. Tanks were of little use, as the ground was still soft from the rains. Again the Marines and the GIs faced the daunting prospect of resolutely held ridge lin es raining mortar and machine-gun fire on them as they struggled up the slopes. The Japanese had very few heavy guns left, which eased the Americans' task somewhat. General Ushijima sensed the end was at hand, as the first ridge line fell in only 12 days. On June 17th, the Japanese front collapsed, so Ushijima, after one final, futile counter-attack, ordered his men to infiltrate through the US lines and carry on guerilla warfare in northern Okinawa. He and his staff took refuge in a cave near the island's southern shore. He committed hara-kiri on June 22nd, when US troops approached. General Buckner was killed on June 18th by an artillery shell, in the final days of the drama that was Okinawa. He was the highest ranking American officer to be killed in combat in WWII, and he died only two months before the end. The total Allied losses were 49,000 casualties, of which 9,700 were naval personnel - the worst losses in the navy's history. The naval dead (4,900) outnumbered those of any ot her service in the campaign. They also lost 221 tanks (over half the original force), 36 ships sunk and 368 damaged, and 763 planes. The Japanese losses were 110,000 troops and thousands of civilians. They also lost 16 ships sunk and 4 damaged, and, incredibly, 7,800 planes. But they had served their emperor well, and delayed the Allies by 83 days - nearly three times as long as originally estimated by the Allied planners. The island fighting had shown that the only way to deal with determined defenders who would not surrender was with fighting men of equal skill and determination who would not relent. The desperate, resolute and intelligent defence of Okinawa by the Japanese must have been a factor in the decision to drop the atomic bombs on Japan. After all, if they fought in that fashion for an island populated by people they considered their inferiors, how would they fight for their homeland? SCENARIO NOTES The Japanese vacated the Shuri line under cover of the heavy storms. After the rains abated somewhat, the US forces took up the pursuit. This scenario depicts the contribution of the Marines to the closing stages of the Okinawa campaign. Movement costs are greater than in the Shuri scenario due to the sodden ground. PLAYER'S NOTES THE MARINES. You must drive south and assault yet another fortified line. To win you must clear Oroku and breach the Japanese defences near Kunishi Ridge. The Japanese troops are weaker now but still occupy formidable positions, so all previous comments about assaulting fortified lines still apply. Be prepared for the arrival of the 8th R.C.T. late in the game. A fresh unit can make all the difference. The 1st must attack towards Itoman, clearing important terrain around Dakiton, en route. Once accomplished, the main defensive line on the Kunishi Ridge must be penetrated to reach Makabe. The 6th Marines has been split into two groups to clear the Oroku Peninsular. Once cleared the 6th should proceed south and support the 1st by striking Kyamu. JAPANESE FORCES. You still have excellent positions, but the quality of your troops has suffered. You must be extremely careful in choosing attacks. Base units and Boetai are not suitable for any real offensive action. If you can delay the fall of Oroku and hold the line at Kunishi, you should win. The Ad Hoc formation must delay the advance of the 1st Marines on Itoman. The Navy defends Oroku to the death. The 24th division holds Kunishi Ridge and then makes its last stand at Makabe. SCENARIO VARIANTS (1a/1b) Same as Shuri. (2) Assume that the 8th R.C.T. clean up their small island objectives earlier. Change their arrival to turn 25. (3) Assume that the rain clears earlier and therefore allows easier movement. Adjust all the movement values for all terrain to that used in the Shuri scenario. Also adjust the movement allowance of US divisional HQs, which were reduced to reflect the logistical difficulties of the poor ground conditions. (4) Assume that more of the Japanese 24th Division's battalions remain intact for the defence at Kunishi. Substitute standard rifle battalions for the Boetai battalions used and add 1 to the experience rating of all 24th Division rifle battalions. 6. PUSAN - SACHON August 6th - 12th, 1950 "Following Brigade rapid advance from Chindong-ni to Sachon in which this Brigade attacked, overcame, and pursued the enemy, the 25th Infantry Division directed the withdrawal of this Brigade in order to hold a defensive position and mop up enemy resistance in the zone of action of elements of the 25th Division" 1st Provisional Marine Brigade order, August 13th 1950 The 1st Marine Brigade, consisting mainly of the 5th Marine Regiment, landed at Pusan on August 2nd, and was to go into action on the 7th. The plan was to launch a counter-attack on the very southern end of the North Korean front, to draw NKPA attention and reserves from their anticipated attack on the centre of the US line. The attacking forces were designated Task Force Kean, and consisted of the Marines, the 5th Regimental Combat Team (RCT) and two regiments of the 25th Infantry Division. The attack would jump off from the coastal town of Masan and head towards Chinju, cutting off a large peninsula and threatening the right flank of the entire NKPA line. The 35th Regiment of the 25th Division would take the inland road through Pansong, the 5th RCT would accompany the Marines down to Chindong-ni and then cut across to Pansong, and the Marines would take the longer coast road through Kosong and Sachon - their first major objective. Facing TF Kean was the NKPA 6th Infantry Division, re inforced with the 83rd Motorcycle Regiment. This force was also about to put in an attack, hoping to stage an 'end run' on the weak left flank of the UN forces and roll up their line. The initial set-up advances of these two forces collided at Chindong-ni on the night of August 6th/7th. From then until the morning of the 9th the fighting swirled around the hills overlooking Chindong-ni. The NKPA positions here were eventually wiped out and the advance began to get under way. The Marines headed south along the coast road, and arrived at Taedabok Pass, a narrow defile 15km short of Kosong, on August 10th. The day was spent clearing the hills overlooking the pass of an ambush. When the lead elements of the force arrived in Kosong the next morning, they surprised about 100 vehicles of the NKPA 83rd Motorcycle Regiment. Good co-operation between the ground troops and Marine Air Group 33 ensured their destruction, at a cost of two Corsairs down. The 24km from there to the village of Changcho n were almost uncontested. The Marine Brigade was now fighting on two fronts 40km apart, facing in opposite directions. Their leader, Brigadier-General Craig, commanded from a helicopter. At midnight on the 12th/13th, the rest of the Brigade received orders to withdraw back to the Chindong-ni area. As they started to move in the early morning, an all-out NKPA attack hit them. One platoon was overrun, and the pressure did not let up until dawn, when artillery and air power forced the attackers to retreat. The Marines were finally free to withdraw from combat to prepare for MacArthur's masterstroke - the landing at Inchon. SCENARIO NOTES The exact composition of the NKPA units is uncertain. Nevertheless the names, locations and approximate strengths are correct. Both sides are given as night combat capable to simulate the NKPA's preference for nocturnal combat and the Americans' demonstrated ability to cope with it. The Marines have been split up into company-size units to reflect their actual employment. PLAYER'S NOTES THE MARINES. You must first deal with the extensive NKPA forces on your flanks. They should be wiped out if possible, but leave the GIs to deal with them and push the Marines south as soon as practical. You must take Sachon and/or Chinju to secure victory. The American 25th Infantry Division must hold Masan and Chindong-ni. The 1st Marine Brigade are to attack along the path Kosong-Changchon-Sachon-Chinju. NORTH KOREAN FORCES. You must make the best use of the limited forces you have. Leave one 'regiment' (actually a battalion) of the 13th Regiment to tie up the Allies near Chindong-ni, and withdraw the rest into the rough to regroup. You can then strike east at Masan, south at Chindong-ni or west at Pansong. Chinju and Sachon must not fall. SCENARIO VARIANTS (1) Assume that the NKPA had been prepared for the attack. Move their units to a sensible defence line, say from Paedun-ni along the south side of the road to near Pansong, then north. Allow them 10 mine and 10 fort hexes, to be placed at will. (2) Assume that the Marines had not been depleted by pre-war budget cuts. Use the blank Allied third division to create the 1st Marine Regiment, similar to the 5th already there. Place it anywhere that is Allied controlled at the start of the game. 7. INCHON - SEOUL September 15th - 27th, 1950 "Mr President: By the grace of a merciful providence our forces fighting under the standard of that greatest hope and inspiration of mankind, the United Nations, have liberated this ancient capital city of Korea." Douglas MacArthur to President Syngman Rhee, September 29th, 1950. With the addition of large numbers of UN (mostly American) troops, the situation around Pusan had finally stabilised. The NKPA, in its last offensive gasp, had taken the key town of Taegu, but outnumbered and battered, could go no further. General Douglas MacArthur, commander of the UN forces in Korea, had decided to stage an amphibious landing behind the NKPA lines to retake Seoul and cut the supply and communications lines that ran through there. Inchon was chosen because it was the closest large port to Seoul. Despite five days of air and two days of sea bombardment, the landing on September 15th took the NKPA by surprise. The harbour islands of Wolmi-do and Sowolmi-do were captured, after a severe pounding, with light casualties. By the end of the first day the Marines controlled most of Inchon and the surrounding hills. On the next day, the two Marine regiments attacked out of Inchon along the highway towards Seoul, leaving the KMC to secure the town. After a short, sharp fight to take Ascom City, the 5th Marine regiment and the KMC turned north towards Kimpo, site of a large airfield, while the 1st Marine Regiment headed east towards Yongdungp'o, an industrial suburb of Seoul just across the Han river from Seoul proper. After beating back some determined but hopeless counter-attacks, the 5th Regiment took the airfield and some hills to the south east that overlooked it. By the morning of the 18th, the airfield at Kimpo was secure. The next day it was being used as a base for Marine air squadrons. The 1st Marines were having a harder time of it. Halfway between Ascom City and Sosa, a group of NKPA ambushed the lead platoon, but were repelled with a loss of over three hundred by tank and aircraft fire. It had been the Marines' hardest fight so far. The 5th Regiment were now ordered to cross the Han and take Haengju, preparatory to moving on Seoul itself. The recon team that preceded the crossing forces had failed to check the crest of nearby Hill 125, and gave t he all-clear signal. As the crossing started, NKPA bullets and mortar bombs hit the water and shore around the Marines. The unprepared LVTs and am-tracks beat a hasty and unauthorised retreat. Embarrassed by this repulse, the Marine commanders ordered the battalion concerned (3/5th) to cross in force at 6.30 am that same day. A single company was sent across in LVTs and am-tracks, and made it over almost unhurt. The three platoons then assaulted and took the hill. The rest of the regiment crossed over during the day. The 1st Regiment now concentrated on Yongdungp'o. They took the hills overlooking the town, then had to retake them, due to an administrative blunder. Having captured the last hills outside Yongdungp'o, the regiment plunged into the city at dawn on the 21st. Fierce resistance cost the Marines many casualties, and the twin drives, from the northwest and southwest, were stopped. One company, however, had penetrated into the very centre of the city. Between 9 pm and midnight, the company fought off five strong attacks by NKPA infantry. The 5th Marine Regiment was in position in front of the hills that run along the northern side of Seoul on September 22nd. These hills were defended by the 25th Brigade, veterans of the Chinese Civil War. There was hard fighting ahead for the men of the 5th Marines. The next three days saw combat as fierce as any the Marines had ever seen. The NKPA small-unit leadership and tactics in the hills were impeccable, and they put in several locally successful counter-attacks. The Marines were told that the capital was to be taken by the 25th, so that General MacArthur could announce its liberation exactly three months after its capture. By the 24th much of the hill line had been cleared, but there was no slackening of enemy resistance. Major-General Almond, commanding the X Corps, changed the attack plan. The 32nd Infantry and the 17th ROK Regiment were ordered to cross the Han south of Seoul and take the city's defenders in the r ear. For the first time in the campaign, the 1st Marine Division was fighting as a division. At 7 am on September 25th, the UN forces entered Seoul from three directions; the 5th Marines finally swept the hills clear and entered from the northwest, the 1st Marines had crossed the Han and entered from the southwest, and the Army troops had taken South Mountain and entered from the southeast. The announcement of Seoul's capture went out on time. The announcement was, however, somewhat premature. The NKPA still held the bulk of the city, and none of the captured areas were secure. Units had to constantly about-face and retake a building or city block to clear out infiltrators. The initial caution against use of supporting fire, to preserve the city, evaporated with the need to take the city swiftly. Two more days of close-in street fighting were required to clear the city centre and take Government House. The NKPA proved skilled in city combat; everywhere were barricades, ambushes, mines and booby-traps. Finally, as the evening of September 28th drew in, the North Koreans gave up the fight and started withdrawing to the north. The next day, to the sound of distant cannon, with an honour guard composed chiefly of Marines, General MacArthur handed the remains of the city over to President Rhee. The lightning strike at Seoul, together with the conventional attack at the Pusan perimeter, had shattered the NKPA. Of the 130,000 men that had poured across the border three months ago, less than 30,000 got back. SCENARIO NOTES The game starts at noon on September 15th and goes for 50 turns until the 28th, when the capital had fallen and was secure. Again both sides are flagged as night capable to simulate the almost 24-hour-a-day combat that occurred. The Marines are split up into companies to conform with their employment. PLAYER'S NOTES THE MARINES. You must advance swiftly to capture Yongdungp'o, then swing your Marines either north or south (preferably both) to take Seoul. The airfield must be cleared for the air-landing troops that will arrive on turn 38. The Marine Division has a string of objectives Haengju-To Nth Korea-Government House and must attack them in order. The 32nd Regiment has solely Seoul 3 as divisional objective for the southern approach. The UN's Miscellaneous unit has the Kimpo airfield to mop up. NORTH KOREAN FORCES. You must defend carefully. You will not be able to attack with any prospect of success until the US player gets men into Seoul. Your troops there, especially the 25th Brigade, are quite good. The reinforcements from the south that arrive on turn 8 can be used as defenders of Yongdungp'o, or can launch an end run on Inchon itself. The 31st Division has been given the task of fighting for Government House, a highly symbolic building. SCENARIO VARIANTS (1) Assume the NKPA had got around to laying mines off Inchon (they were going to any day _ ). Reduce all Allied troops landing in the first two days by 1 strength point and 2 fatigue points, and stretch them out so that only two units plus a HQ land each turn. (2) Assume the complimentary Allied offensive had been more successfully prosecuted than it had. Remove the NKPA reinforcements from the south and one regiment from Seoul itself. 8. HUE February 8th - 23rd, 1968 "But by the middle of February, he [the NVA] was through. He had not gained the popular support he expected. The American presence in Vietnam was unshaken. The Vietnamese armed forces _ had done surprisingly well _ not a single ARVN unit defected. He had won no battle field victories, held no new territory, and in I Corps alone had used up the equivalent of three divisions." General William Westmoreland Hue was another story. The beautiful ancient capital had always been something of an open city thus far in the war, and was not properly defended. In less than a day, seven Communist battalions took almost the entire city. The only holdouts were the MACV (Military Assistance Command, Vietnam) compound south of the river, and the headquarters of the 1st ARVN Division within the imperial citadel. Early on January 31st, A/1/1st Company Marines arrived at the MACV compound. They were soon joined by G/2/5th Company and a tank platoon. The compound was safe. Reinforcements composed of F and H/2/5th Marines joined them on the 1st and 2nd of February respectively, followed by B/1/1st Company on the 4th. The five companies were organised into two (understrength) battalions, the 1/5th and 2/5th. Not until February 9th did the Marines recapture the whole city south of the river. Meanwhile, north of the river, the 3rd ARVN Regiment reinforced by three airborne battalions was making slow, steady pr ogress, moving from the northeast corner (where the ARVN HQ was located) towards the southwest. Three days later, after further calls from the ARVN, the Marines moved into the old city north of the river. Monsoon rains nullified airpower. The US Marines took the left flank, the ARVN Marines the right, with the 3rd ARVN Regiment in the centre. It was eleven days of hard house-to-house, block-by-block combat before the bulk of the NVA in the city had been eliminated. The NVA had committed between eight and eleven battalions to the battle, under the aegis of the 6th NVA Regiment. Facing them were three understrength battalions of Marines and thirteen ARVN battalions, although not all at the same time. West of the city five US Army battalions had been used to cut the NVA supply lines to the hills. Militarily speaking, the Tet offensive in general and the Hue battle in particular were a disaster for the North Vietnamese. The Viet Cong organisation in South Vietnam was shattered, the NVA sev erely battered, and no lasting results were obtained. But politically it must be counted a success. The US public were shaken to discover that an enemy supposed to be on the brink of defeat could deal such a blow. SCENARIO NOTES This scenario depicts the second phase of the fighting in the old city north of the river. It begins with the US marines in position after being re-deployed north to support the ARVN regulars and marine units who were making slow progress against strong enemy resistance in the old citadel. Their final goal is the Palace of Peace located near the southern wall. PLAYER'S NOTES THE MARINES (AND SOME ARVN). You should maintain a steady pressure while fully utilising available fire support points. Any VC infiltrations must be swiftly dealt with while maintaining constant progress toward your objectives. You must take territory to win. NVA/VC FORCES. You must delay the enemy advance with skilful defence. Don't waste your strength with fruitless assaults. Attack only small, tired, enemy units. It doesn't matter how many of your men survive at the end of play; if you can hang onto the major objectives, you'll win. SCENARIO VARIANTS (1) Assume that additional marine armour support was committed to the fight in the Citadel. Activate the armour asset of the marine division by giving it a maximum and current strength of 6. The remaining information necessary to activate the battalion is already in the database. (2) Assume the NVA command structure had not been disrupted by a B52 strike (as it was). Increase all NVA admin, leadership and supply values by 1 at division and regiment levels. EPILOG "We're professional soldiers. We fight any enemy the President designates" Commandant David M. Shoup, 1961 Looking back at the history of the USMC, we can see that, from uncertain beginnings, it evolved into an organisation that acquired, through its exploits, a reputation for military skill and determination unexcelled by any force of comparable size in the world. To a great extent it has been able to live up to its billing. Its popularity is both deserved and necessary. There is no doubt that without the support from Congress and the general public that the Corps has enjoyed in the past and enjoys today, the armed forces of the USA would long ago have been deprived of an elite fighting arm that has always been 'The First to Fight'. PART THREE A DESIGN TUTORIAL The following example is a simple introduction to the use of WarPlan. In it we will give the United States some more marines at Iwo Jima. Open the Iwo Jima scenario to work on and then select WarPlan from the Environment menu. The Iwo Jima map will open and to the left of the map will be the Tools window. See Fig 6 in the Game Manual. This window contains all the tools used in map and unit creation and placement. The hand icon is used both to access the unit database and to place them on the map. Double click on this icon and the Order of Battle or (OB) window will open. See Fig 8 in the Game Manual. The top left of the window contains the icons for each side, along with buttons for selecting them. Obviously you can only edit one side at a time. Select the US side. The window shows the divisional HQ buttons along the top, as they appeared in the Command Window, and the regimental HQ buttons below. Click on the first division HQ button. The second and third regiments will be defined and have their component battalion icons to the right. The first and fourth regiments are undefined (as shown by the question mark) and their battalion icons are empty. We will now define Regiment 1. Double-click on the first (top) regimental HQ button (currently a question mark). A dialog box will appear so we can enter the regimental HQ details. See Fig 9 in the Game Manual. Make the following entries; HQ ID (R.C.T. 3), HQ Type (Marine), Admin (6), Leadership (7), Supply (7), Brittle (0). The Return key enters the data in a field, the Tab key moves the cursor the next field and Shift-Tab moves it back one field. Any field can be selected by clicking on it with the mouse. When you have finished press the Done button. You will see that the regiment HQ button has changed from a question mark to the normal shape. To the right of the regiment are the battalion icons. Double-clicking on a battalion icon brings up the battalion dialog box. It works just like the regimental dialog box. Double-c lick on the first battalion icon of the first regiment. Enter the following details; Battalion ID (1st), Unit Class (0), Arrival Mode (3), Equipment (1), Movement (12), Arrival Turn (26), Max. Strength (12), Cur. Strength (12), Tactical Rating (12), Range (0), Fatigue (7), Experience (7). When you are finished, instead of hitting the Done button, use the Bat button. This takes you to the next battalion in the same regiment. Enter the details for the next two battalions in the same way, but make the IDs (2nd) and (3rd) respectively. The fourth battalion is an artillery battalion. Enter Battalion ID (12a), Unit Class (13), Arrival Mode (3), Equipment (4), Movement (14), Arrival Turn (27), Max. Strength (4), Cur. Strength (4), Tactical Rating (9), Range (15), Fatigue (7), Experience (6). After creating the fourth battalion you should see four landing craft icons opposite your new regiment. Now you have to place these on the map. To do that just click on the battalion you want and drag it onto the map, releasing the mouse button when it is in the desired position. The current cursor co-ordinates are displayed in the bottom left of the map window. The co-ordinates for each battalion (in order) are (8,17), (9,16), (8,17) and (9,16). That's all you have to do. Save your altered scenario under a different name and you can test it out. -------------------------------------------------------------------- MACARTHUR'S WAR SCENARIOS Strategic Studies Group (SSG) -------------------------------------------------------------------- LEARNING TO PLAY THE GAME You have just stepped into the muddy combat boots of General Milburn, commander of the United Nations 29th Brigade in Korea. The date is April 22nd, 1951. You are deployed on the Imjin River, north of Seoul, with about 6,000 crack troops. Facing you across the river is General Peng commanding about 20,000 troops of the Peoples' Republic of China, beginning the 1st Step of their 5th Phase offensive. General Ridgway's "meat-grinder" tactics have caused heavy attrition on the Chinese forces and they have been forced to replace many of their veterans with green troops. Still, you can expect the Chinese to attack with their usual reckless courage, and it won't be an easy job to hold them off. If you fail, it is very likely that Seoul will fall yet again and that won't do your future career prospects any good at all... As well as this scenario booklet, you will need to have the game map in front of you and to have located the appropriate area for the Imjin scenario. The Imjin situation map i n this booklet will also help you orient yourself to the action. Finally, the accompanying illustrations identify the various icons which represent the military units on the screen during the game. (a). Starting Up. Start up your computer using the procedure given in the preceding chapter. Menu A (Start Up Menu) appears to the right of the title page. Have a look at the AII/C64/IBM menu card. As is the case with every menu in the game, you use the arrow keys to locate your choice from the menu and then type (RET) to select it. IBM users may alternatively use a function key to locate and select a menu item. The line in Menu A is the third line in the menu; therefore f3 will select it. Similarly, f4 will select the line. If you select the wrong menu, don't worry. Apple II and IBM users type (ESC) to go back to the previous menu; C64/128 users type (f1). IBM and Apple II users note that the (DEL) key will also serve as an (ESC) key in most situations. (b). Selecting the Imjin Scenario. Before we can start play, we have to select the Imjin scenario, tell the computer that we will control the Allied forces and decide whether we wish to use a handicap. Use either arrow key to locate the line and type (RET) to go to Menu B (Location Select). At this point, IBM owners using 5.25" or 3.5" floppy disks should remove Disk One from the drive and replace it with Disk Two (3.5") or Disk Three (5.25"). Apple II owners with one disk drive should remove the game disk, turn it over and put it back in the drive. Use an arrow key to locate the line and type (RET) to go to Menu C (Scenario Menu). Use an arrow key to locate the line and type (RET) to go to Menu E (Edit Utility). The scenario briefing screen is displayed to the left of the menu window. IBM users must select the line and then position the cursor over the line and type (RET). Use an arrow key to locate the line and type (RET) to go to Menu N (Enhanced Opponent). We must now decide whether to play an enhanced computer opponent. Since we are just starting out, this probably isn't a good idea. Locate the line and type (RET) to go to Menu F (Handicap Utility). Since this is only a tutorial, we will give ourselves a break. The handicaps below the line benefit the Allies/United Nations, those above benefit the Axis/North Koreans and Chinese. Use an arrow key to locate the Allied line and type (RET) to go to Menu G (Player Select). Locate the line and type (RET). The cursor has been thrown into the briefing screen and you have the opportunity to change the commanders' names. Do this if you wish, otherwise type (RET) until you get back to Menu E (Edit Utility). Have a last look at the briefing screen and you'll see the Allies have a major handicap advantage, the Axis forces will be run by the computer and the Allied forces will be run by human hands. Use an arrow key to locate the line and type (RET) to go to Men u H (Game Master). That's the preliminaries over with. We're just about ready to play. Turn your menu card over to the game side. (c). The First Turn. Back to Menu H. A current turn briefing appears to the left of the menu window. This scenario starts on the pm. turn and it is turn 3 of 19. Subsequent lines tell you the time of day and the date, the atmospheric weather and the expected weather forecast. The weather is fine and stable. IBM users should note that the and lines have been replaced with and . The and lines in the menu have been overprinted with a solid bar to show that you cannot access them. The solid bar will disappear from the line after the / line has been accessed. This is to guard against accidentally selecting before issuing your orders. The / line will always be overprinted during the game. The computer does not want you to see what it is doing! Locate the line and type (RET). This brings you to Menu 2 (Operations). Your choices here are , or . Apple II and C-64 users can only access the option. The screen will be showing part of South Korea, around the junction of the Imjin and Hanton rivers. Below the map is a summary of your force identity and the victory points you have accumulated to date; i.e. if you were to end the game at this point you would have scored 225 VPs. (That's the value of all the objectives you currently control; unfortunately the number will dwindle over the next four days!). (d). Reviewing Your Forces. Before issuing orders we'll review our forces, examine the battlefield, the objectives and the enemy forces. Select the line to go to Menu 4 (General Reports). This is just a branch menu. Select the line to go to Menu 5 (Unit Status). For Apple II and C-64 users, the name of your senior HQ appears beside its I.D. code in the menu window. You have one senior HQs under your command. IBM users will the see the names of the senior HQs appearing in the window themselves with any current objective assigned to the major HQ appearing beside the menu window. In this case, there is just one senior HQ, the 29th Bde, and no objective is currently assigned to it. Select the or the <29th Bde> line to display the components of the 29th Bde. This screen displays the status of an entire senior HQ at a time. There are four junior HQs, all of which are on the battlefield at the start of the scenario. Each junior HQ controls three or four units while the senior HQ controls an ad ditional four units which can be freely allocated to any of the junior HQs during the play of the game. These flexible units are called assets and are shown at the top of the display. For example, the 45th Artillery Battery is currently attached to JHQ 1 (the Nth Fus Bn). The other three assets will arrive on the battlefield during the course of the game. The 8th King's Royal Irish Hussars will arrive on turn 9, the Philippine armoured unit and the Puerto Rican infantry on turn 8. The display tells you the identity, unit type, level of fatigue and the experience of each unit. Any losses sustained by a unit are shown on the right-hand side of the screen. The status screen is quite useful and should be consulted about once a day to get an overview of the condition of your troops. Type (ESC/f1) until you return to Menu 4. Select the line to obtain Menu 6 (Examine Friendly Objective). The cursor will be high-lighting the East Crossing. The text summarises the turns for which Vi ctory Points are received, the number of VPs per turn, and any VPs awarded for control at the end of the game. These values are for the U.N. player; the Chinese player may well have both different objectives and/or different values. In this case, for the U.N. player, the objective is active for turns 1 - 12, is worth 2 VPs per turn and a further 10 VPs if it is controlled at the end of the game. The icons in the centre of the display show that the East crossing is on low scrub terrain and is U.N. controlled. The arrow keys will cycle through all of your objective hexes. Use them now to look at all of your objectives to gain an idea of your overall requirements for winning the game. There are nine other objectives. Check this screen often as the game progresses to make sure you are on track. Consider the display in the bottom right of the screen. The solid area is the overall map size. The smaller white box represents the location of the hexes currently on the screen. As you move the cu rsor to different parts of the map, the small box will move to show the relative location of the current screen against the overall map. Type (ESC/f1) to return to Menu 4. We can examine the battlefield with the aid of the routines. Select to bring up Menu 7. The cursor and any visible objectives will be flashing. Use the arrow keys or the I,J,K,M keys to move the cursor over the battlefield. You can examine the terrain, the objectives or enemy and friendly units. Move the cursor to the Chinese unit on just to the north-west of Hill 194. You are told it is a large infantry unit contacted by friendly forces. Move the cursor to the U.N. unit on Hill 257. A full status report is provided about the unit. Now type (RET) to bring up the menu. Selecting the line will display the who controls each hex on the battlefield. Hex control is very important for movement and resupply. Selecting the line will temporarily remove the roads from the map. Selecting the line will temporarily remove all units from the map. These three features are cumulative; i.e. any or all of them can be active at the one time. Type (ESC/f1) to go back to Menu 4. Let's give those rotten Commies some stick! (e). Issuing Orders. Type (ESC/f1) to bring up Menu 2 and select the line to bring up Menu 8. Select the /<29th Bde> line to bring up Menu 9 and then select to bring up Menu 13. We have four junior HQs to give orders to. Select /. The flashing cursor indicates that the junior HQ is in the state. This state determines what sort of orders we can give. The component units of the junior HQ (which include an Artillery asset from the senior HQ reserve) have been highlighted and their target is indicated by the target marker. Select the line. The arrow keys will cycle the cursor through the component units of the junior HQ. We can see that we have three units of veteran infantry, one veteran mortar unit and a unit of elite 25 pdr guns. All units are fresh. To the right of the unit description you can see what type of terrain the units are in, which is either hills or foothills. The line is always available from this menu. Use it to keep up with the location and condition of the units in each junior HQ as we go through them. Note that IBM users can access the Map Walk routines from Menu 14. Type (ESC/f1) to return to Menu 14 and select the line to bring up Menu 18. This is the menu with the actual orders for a junior HQ in the state. Our options are , , and . The situation at the moment calls for resolute defence as we are pretty heavily outnumbered. Select and you will be returned to Menu 17. Type (ESC/f1) to go back to Menu 13. / is in a state. Select to bring up Menu 16 which displays the orders that can be given to a junior HQ in the state. The options are , , and . We want the Glosters to move up and defend the West Crossing; the longer we can keep the Chinese north of the river, the better our chances will be. Select the line and use the cursor keys to cycle through the object ives to "West C'sing" and then type (RET) to select it. The four units in the Glosters will move toward the objective in the next turn. Now select the / line, also in a state. We will keep this formation in reserve and commit it later, when we have seen how the battle develops. As all the component units are fresh, we need not issue a order. Instead, we will tell the junior HQ to . Finally, select the / line. This formation is in the state. Select the line. The options available are , , and . Against the large number of Chinese troops flooding south, is probably the best option. Note that the option allows the use of an additional combat menu. Don't use it this turn! Select the line and then type (ESC/f1) twice to return to Menu 9. What additional help can we give our brave men? Well, we can provide them with in the form of off-map air-stri ke/ artillery fire and with in the form of units attached directly to the senior HQ. First to . Select the line and you'll see you have 25 points of support at your disposal. (This can fluctuate from turn to turn.) The Nth Fus (JHQ 1) and the Belgians (JHQ 4) are in or with the enemy and they need all the help they can get. The Glosters and the Ulsters are in the state and therefore don't need support. In fact, you should never waste support points on units in the state. They gain no benefit from them! Assign 12 points to the Nth Fus and 13 points to the Belgians. That will help break up any Chinese attack! Now to assign . Selecting the line will bring up Menu 11. Only the 45th Royal Artillery is currently on the map and it is assigned to the Nth Fus (JHQ 1). Leave it that way for this turn. You should check your assets every turn and assign them, especially artillery, to the junior HQ that most needs them . There is no need to . (f). The First Turn Reviewed. We have issued defend orders to the Nth Fus and the Belgians, directed the Glosters toward an objective and deployed the Ulsters. We have allocated air support to those formations which need it, assigned a divisional asset to the Nth Fus and examined all the troops under our command. Now it is time to fight. (g). The Computer's Role. Type (ESC/f1) until you return to Menu H, the Master Game Menu. If you think all is ready select . Combat and movement will then occur. The Chinese may not attack you attack on the first turn, but you will get a combat report if any combats do occur. Hit the space bar to continue after each report. Each junior HQ is identified as the attacker or defender and their current orders appear underneath. IBM users are provided with some additional graphics. Up to three bomb icons can appear to the right of the I.D. This tells you how much support has been added to the formation; none, light, medium or heavy. Up to three crosses can appear beside the formation order. This tells you how many strength points have been lost by that formation; none, light (less than 10%), medium (20%-30%) or heavy (more than 30%). If three 'death heads' appear, the unit has been KIAd (killed in action, destroyed, rubbed out... however you like to describe it!). After the first turn is finished you will be r eturned to Menu H. (h). The Game Plan. The fortunes of war being what they are, it is not exactly possible to say how things will run. The Chinese troops are going to flood on in huge numbers and although you have some very good soldiers on your side, theirs will not be an easy task. You cannot stop them completely but you must force them to take heavy casualties for their territorial gains and slow them as much as possible. Some brief points to help you win the day. Your veteran troops, with their heavy air support, are man for man, easily a match for the opposition. But they heavily out-number you. Don't let the small number of Chinese units on the map at the start fool you... enemy reinforcements pour in on the second day! You must therefore deploy your troops carefully to defend key points, moving your small reserve around as necessary. On occasion, a well-supported attack will be effective but you must watch fatigue and supply levels. More than anything this short scenario, and the decisions you will have to make, illu strates the amazing flexibility of the Battlefront Game System. There are no hard and fast rules as how to play each game. You must tailor your tactics to suit your objectives, the forces you have in hand and the opposition you face. What works in one situation must be re-evaluated to see if it will work when circumstances change. 3. THE SCENARIOS There are 8 scenarios included with the MacArthur's War game. The Imjin scenario (#8) is the tutorial and is highly recommended for beginners. In order of increasing difficulty, the other scenarios are Chipyong (#7), 'Across the 38th' (#1), Chosin reservoir (#6), Taejon (#2), Unsan (#4), Naktong Bulge (#3) and Chongchon (#5). In addition to the general history, each scenario is accompanied by a short historical briefing, a situation map which shows the locations of the opposing junior HQs at the start of the battle, player's notes and scenario variants. Before playing a scenario, we recommend you read all the notes and examine the situation map. THE KOREAN WAR (1950-1953) Introduction Upon casual observation, the Korean War may appear to have been merely another cruel civil war, of no concern to the rest of the world. Only by closer examination can we hope to see the true depth of the conflict, and thus comprehend the current state of world affairs. To gain this knowledge, one must look to the past. An ancient Korean proverb declares that when two whales battle, the shrimp is crushed between them. Much to her misfortune, the "Land of the Morning Calm" has always been the shrimp of the east, cast into a troubled sea between the giant whales of Russia, China and Japan. In the summer of 1950, the prophecy would be realised during the conflict between ideological giants which was the Korean War. A study in contrasts, the terrain of the Korean peninsula varies drastically. Great lunar mountain ranges of the north and east balance deep valleys and lowlands of the south and west. Rich with minerals and industry, the north could scarcely survive without the agriculture of t he south. Rivers, great and small, traverse the land, swelling with the seasonal monsoons. Mongols and Manchus have used the Korean valleys as roadways to victory, and modern nations have also known the strategic value of Korea. By 1905, Russia and Japan sought to expand their Empires, often in competition. China was a likely target, too large and poorly organised to defend its treasures. Vital Manchuria tempted each, but Korea had to be held as a gateway to those goals. With a crushing victory over the Russian fleet off Tsushima, Japan seized Korea, proved itself a genuine world power, and began a bloody 40 year occupation. The flower of Korean independence fell swiftly to the Samurai sword. The United States found it convenient to forget a mutual assistance agreement with Korea, recognising its own lack of military effectiveness halfway around the globe. With the passing of WWI and the Russian revolution, Korean guerillas found new hope with the advent of communism and grave losses w ere dealt to the Japanese occupation forces. Nevertheless, Imperial expansion continued and in 1931, the Mukden Incident was swiftly followed by occupation of all Manchuria. In 1939 Russia and Japan signed a non-aggression pact and the two whales agreed upon relative peace. With the Tripartite Axis Pact of 1940 however, Axis nations had set themselves against the world. Colonial attitudes, so acceptable in the 19th century, would reap a horrible cost in tens of millions of lives by 1945. The outcome would shake Korea to the foundation. U.S. strategy in the Pacific War, and the development of a mighty strategic bombing force, gradually negated Japan's ability to make war. Yet the wisdom of military planners became clouded by the political desire for an "unconditional" surrender. Fearing the loss of their divine Emperor, Japan was forced to fight to the bitter end. Foreseeing a bloody conclusion to the war, the U.S. insisted on Russian entry into the conflict at the Potsdam Conference. T his one, stupid act, more than any other, may well have set the stage for world politics as we now know it. Russia did enter the Pacific War August 8th, 1945, two days before Japan surrendered and not until the U.S. had guaranteed the survival of the Emperor. In short, the U.S had expended 95% of the war effort in defeating Russia's historic rival, and had then encouraged Russia to seize the initiative! By war's end, Russia had occupied the Baltic States and half of Germany in the west, and Manchuria and half of Korea in the east. As a line of demarcation, the 38th parallel was agreed upon in Korea, with Russia accepting Japanese surrender in the north, and the U.S. doing likewise in the south. With the sudden collapse of Japan, Russia took possession of strategic areas and vast amounts of war materiel. Manchuria and Japanese arms were given to the Chinese communists, who were then able to tip the scale in the Chinese Civil War and win the mainland. Further, many thousands of Koreans w ho had fought the Japanese were given further experience in communist Chinese divisions. They would return one day to their homeland, with the aim of resolving their own political issues. In November 1947, the United Nations General Assembly established a Temporary Commission on Korea, to supervise a national election. Refusing to accept that authority, Russia established an interim (communist) government in the north of Korea. Nevertheless, the UN held its election in May 1948 in all areas accessible; i.e. south of the 38th parallel. Syngman Rhee was elected president of the newly formed Republic of Korea. In August 1948 the Russians staged an election in the north, producing the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea and Premier Kim Il Sung. Each government claimed rule over all of Korea, but in December 1948 the General Assembly recognised the ROK as the legitimate representative and called for withdrawal of Russian and U.S. forces. By the summer of 1949 the withdrawals were complete. Korea was left to fend for itself, and the ancient proverb would soon prove to be an accurate prophecy. This time the shrimp would be the Korean population, crushed between the opposing armies, acting out the hostilities of Cold War politics. With both sides clamouring for violent reunification, and border clashes a common occurrence, a bloody civil war was virtually assured. "ACROSS THE 38TH" 25th - 29th June, 1950 Before withdrawing from Korea, Russia and the U.S. each prepared native military forces in their respective halves of the country. Each had a specific intent, as evidenced by their equipment. The very nature of the opposing forces would quickly determine the outcome of any confrontation, as was demonstrated in the short summer of 1950. The Russians had made the North Korean Peoples Army into an exact replica of their own armed forces. Included were T-34 tanks with 85mm guns, self propelled 76mm assault guns and a variety of heavy artillery and mortars, with a small air force of Yak fighters and Il-10 ground attack bombers. Many NKPA troops were veterans of WWII and the Chinese Civil War, fully trained in the doctrine of Russian envelopment. A complete spy network detailed the precise locations of ROK defences. By 1950, the NKPA was second only to the Russian Army, in Asia. It was a finely tuned offensive arm, capable of the invasion for which it had been created. The ROK, on the other hand, had been blessed with antiquated WWII equipment such as ineffective 2.35" rocket launchers (bazookas) and 37mm anti-tank guns, neither of which could stop modern armour. They had a large number of old, short range, 105mm Howitzers, with little ammunition. There were no tanks, anti-tank mines or combat aircraft. Training was minimal and divisions were under-strength, with no intelligence network to assist them. By June 1950 there was only a stockpile of six days supply, 15% of all weapons and 33% of all vehicles were under repair, and all major commands had recently been shifted. Many men were on leave and most units were poorly disposed and not on likely invasion routes. The US had feared a confrontation with Russia and purposely hamstrung the ROK, to prevent their initiation of aggression. Rather than making an effective defensive army, they had produced a mere national police force. Reflecting American over-confidence of the period, TIME magazine called the ROK Army the ". . . best damn army outside the United States". On the morning of June 25th, several NKPA divisions crossed the 38th parallel at key points. The 1st, 3rd and 4th Divisions deployed down the Pyongyang-Seoul, Pochon-Kumwha and Yonchon-Tongduchon roads respectively. Elements of the 105th Armoured Brigade led the way. Defending, the ROK 1st Division was badly deployed, spread from Yonan to Korangpo. The 7th Division was better positioned at points along the parallel, Tongduchon and Pochon. Only the lead elements of the 2nd Division were available near Seoul, with the remainder in reserve at Taejon. Artillery blasted the ROK positions as armour rolled over defenders, punching holes which truckloads of infantry soon filled. One Regiment actually rode a train to Kaesong, totally surprising the defenders. The ROK soldiers were unable to stop the armour and fell into panic. The inept General Chae ordered a counter-attack at Ui Jongbu, thus depleting his manpower further. Withdrawal became a rout, an d ROK units fled to the capital city, Seoul. Even as the NKPA reached the outskirts of Seoul, the main bridge south across the Han river was prematurely blown, while crammed with hundreds of civilians. Cut off from retreat, the remnants of the ROK forces were lost, with all their equipment. Soldiers were seen disrobing peasants at gunpoint, in an attempt to disguise themselves as civilians. By noon of the 28th, Seoul had fallen. Those ROK forces which had survived the onslaught were reduced by half, all across Korea. Kim Il Sung's plan was working masterfully. It was expected that ten days would be required to conquer the rest of Korea; two months would be allowed if the U.S. intervened! This scenario has a map scale of 2 miles per hex. PLAYER'S NOTES ROK FORCES. At the onset of the war, the ROK troops were of such poor quality they could not take offensive action. Strive to hold the border villages for 3 days, while forming a defensive position at Ui Jongbu, as it is the key to Seoul. In combat, armour is your greatest foe, but its destruction will reward you with twice the VPs. Try to hold Seoul to the end but, if you must give it up, flee toward Taejon to minimise losses. NKPA FORCES. Time is of the essence, with only 10 days scheduled for the liberation of the south. Try to slip past the border villages with fast armour, penetrating as far as possible. Infantry units which follow can mop-up the ROK. When facing determined resistance, use the tactics of envelopment. Use one force to attack the enemy head-on, fixing them in position. Use 1 or 2 more forces to outflank and encircle, cutting supplies. Then eliminate all resistance by relentless attack. Push your troops to the limit until Ui Jongbu is won and Seoul should fall easily. SCENARIO VARIANTS (1) The ROK 1st Division was poorly deployed for defence. Assume General Paik had followed wiser military doctrine and placed his troops on the likely historical invasion routes. Redeploy the Div HQ to Munsan, position all units from 11th Regt within 3 hexes of Kaesong, all units from 12th Regt within 3 hexes of Korangpo and all units from 13th Regt within 2 hexes of Munsan. Position the two divisional asset battalions within 4 hexes of Munsan. (2) At the time of the invasion, most of the ROK 2nd Division was in reserve at Taejon, too far away to respond effectively to the attack on Seoul. Give General Chae Byong Duk credit for more sense than he actually possessed and add the rest of General Lee's ROK 2nd Division to the ROK forces. The Div HQ and two battalions from the 4th Regt begin the game near Seoul. The 9th and 14th Regt HQs are already in the data base and the remaining battalions from the division can be brought to life by entering the following values for current strength; 3/1 (9), 1/2 (6), 2/2 (5), 3/2 (6), 1/3 (5), 2/3 (4), 3/3 (6), 1/- (4), 2/- (3). TAEJON 5th - 20th July, 1950 In the years after WWII the United States had reduced the size of its navy and army such that only ten divisions were deployed around the world by the outbreak of the Korean War. The US had come to depend upon a mighty strategic bomber fleet, and the atom bomb. Strategic planning had placed a protective umbrella over regions considered vital. Korea and Formosa were not included and no contingency plans were developed for their defence. Within hours of the NKPR invasion, US policy changed drastically. American political leaders were shocked by the rapid NKPA advance in the south. Having no strategic plan regarding Korea, and festering in the boiling political soup of McCarthyism, a knee jerk reflex occurred. President Truman and his staff perceived the Korean invasion as yet another example of overt communist aggression... the first step towards global domination. From the chill of a Cold War mind set came the abrupt decision to intervene with a "police action" to arrest the communist a dvance. Having thus decided to intervene militarily, the US sought United Nations sanction to keep the matter politically acceptable. On June 25th, the UN Security Council voted unanimously to blame the NKPR for the "breach of peace", despite Radio Pyongyang claims that the ROK had in fact invaded the north! The Russian UN representative was absent from the vote and Yugoslavia abstained, allowing the UN to call for an immediate cease-fire and withdrawal of NKPR forces. As the NKPA rolled towards Seoul, a Security Council resolution called upon member nations to render military aid to the ROK. Of 59 member states, 53 approved the resolution. 40 offered aid, 16 offered military units and 5 sent medical teams. UN support was forming but the initial burden fell upon US forces. Of those forces, the closest were the under-strength army divisions on soft occupation duty in Japan. Nearly two weeks would be required to transport any sizeable number of troops to the nearest ROK port; Pusan. Unfo rtunately, the closing NKPA divisions were also about two weeks distance from Pusan. If Pusan fell, the war would be over. General Church's 24th Division was the first to enter the conflict but with limited time and shipping available it was committed piecemeal into battle. Those men honoured with the first taste of fighting were the 1st Battalion, 21st Regiment, with an artillery detachment formed under Task Force Smith. Rushed to Pusan by July 1st, many had not even the time to clean their weapons properly. Directed to the farthest point north, TFS rushed to Osan, passing demoralised ROK troops on the road. Green and cocky, the men of TFS epitomised the US attitude and many were sure the NKPR troops would simply turn and run upon seeing that Americans were ready to fight. Unfortunately the veterans of the NKPA 3rd and 4th Divisions, the conquerors of Seoul, were not informed of their obligation to flee in terror. Neither were the US troops prepared to fight such a resolute foe, as th ey would soon find out. On the morning of July 5th, TFS deployed at Osan, just hours before the arrival of enemy armour, and the hard veterans of the NKPR 4th Division. Unable to stop the armour, TFS was overwhelmed and its remnants fell back to the south. As other 24th Division units filtered to the front, defensive positions were formed and lost, from P'yongtaek to Ch'onan, Chochiwon and finally the Kum River. Delay and withdrawal was the only possible strategy to employ. Even so, General Church was determined to make a stand at Taejon, a hub in the ROK road network. His problem, as would later be experienced by UN forces holding the Pusan Perimeter, was that his troops were too few to cover all bridges and ferry crossings of the river. The NKPR could employ flanking and envelopment manoeuvres, making a defensive position untenable. A modern day Thermopylae was the dilemma which faced General Church. For to stand would mean the destruction of his Division, but to abandon Taejon too s oon would not allow for the defence of Taegu, a road/rail centre of the highest priority. That in turn would lead, most likely, to the fall of Pusan. Though 24th Division has been roundly criticised for its poor performance, it probably did no worse than any other army division would have done, and yet it did buy just enough time for a general UN retreat to the Naktong river, forming the Pusan Perimeter defensive position. This scenario has a map scale of 2 miles per hex. PLAYER'S NOTES UN FORCES. Your task is to save time, even at the high cost in lives which must be paid. The trick is to balance the losses against the value gained, remembering that other points further south must also be defended. The hardest of military actions, the art of delay and withdrawal, must be mastered to "win". Make good use of terrain, and note that premature retreat from Taejon is just not possible, due to map restrictions. You will have to tough it out, as did the men of the 24th Division! NKPA FORCES. The opposing forces are roughly equal in number, but your greatest advantage is cohesiveness and superior troop quality. Deploy rapidly to isolate, encircle and destroy defenders. Consider sending a regiment on a longer roundabout path to avoid delays at enemy road-blocks. Be mindful of attacks as your rapid advance south has strained your primitive logistics system, and supply is as critical as time. SCENARIO VARIANTS (1) New 3.5" rockets (super-bazookas) were developed at the end of WWII and one team arrived at Taejon on July 12th. Assume a larger number of the effective AT weapons arrived sooner, and increase Allied infantry ratings by 1. (2) Anti-tank mines were also en route, the use of which may have slowed the NKPA advance enough to allow defenders to gather in force at key points. Set the 24th Division's 3rd Engineer Battalion to arrive on turn 19, and set mines on the road north of Ch'onan and all Kum river crossings. (3) While the NKPA 3rd and 4th Divisions were poised to attack from the north-west, 2nd Division was asked to attack from the east. Exhausted and in reserve near Chongju, they failed to arrive in time to join the battle. Assume the 2nd Division officers properly motivated their men and introduce this formation into the battle. There are 5 HQs and 14 Bns in the 2nd Division, all of which are in the data base except for the Divisional HQ. Enter the following data to create the Div HQ; (2nd XX) (Infantry) (3) (4) (2) (0) (6) (53) (25,11). No entry is required to bring to life the 4 regimental HQs. The battalions are resurrected by entering the following values for current strength; 1/1 (6), 2/1 (4), 3/1 (5), 1/2 (3), 2/2 (4), 3/2 (4), 1/3 (4), 2/3 (6), 3/3 (5), 1/4 (3), 2/4 (2), 3/4 (4), 1/- (2), 2/- (3). NAKTONG BULGE 11th - 19th August, 1950 Concurrent with other offensive actions, the NKPA crossed the Naktong River at three points on August 5th. Two were in the ROK sector, north of Waegwon. The third was south of Waegwon, in the weakened 24th Division sector. By August 11th, the entire 4th Division had deployed in an area referred to as the Naktong Bulge. This breakthrough posed a serious threat, as Yongsan was in danger. Its loss would have divided US forces and endangered the vital city of Miryang. In doing so, the Taegu-Seoul rail and road routes would be cut, severing the supplies of troops defending the Pusan Perimeter. The result would be the likely collapse of the entire defence, and the end of the war. Strong positions were taken by the NKPA on hills such as Clover-leaf and Obong-ni ridge, dominating the road to Yongsan. Lowlands and swamps to the east made it difficult for the weary US troops in the sector to drive out the invaders. Stronger force was needed, and General Walker used the 5th Marine Regiment as a f ire brigade, disengaging it from the Chinju action and rushing it to the Naktong Bulge. With it came the close air support which had become the trademark of the Marines. Strong artillery units were also made available as the seriousness of the situation became evident. Fatigued by the overnight march, the Marines started for Obong-ni ridge on the morning of August 17th and began the close assault in earnest. Marine Corsairs assailed the North Korean foe with deadly accuracy but many still remained in their deep foxholes. Hand grenades and carbines became the weapons of choice as the Marines cleared the high ground in gritty fighting which the official USMC historian ranked as one of the hardest fights in the history of the Corps. Clinging to their positions with desperation, the NKPA called upon their reliable T-34's to turn the tide, as they had done so many times before. Much to their misfortune, though, the tides of war had changed. Representative of the war as a whole, UN forces re sponded with a variety of arms, from 3.5" rocket teams, M26/90 Pershing tanks, recoil-less rifles and deadly ground support aircraft, each claiming their share of enemy tanks. The legend of the invincible T-34 had vanished in acrid smoke. With the loss suffered at the Naktong Bulge, the NKPA 4th Division was finished. Having suffered heavy losses prior to the Naktong offensive, its ranks were filled with green replacements. It had been further crippled by supply shortages, prohibiting effective offensive actions. Following the Naktong defeat, the 4th Division was delegated a Guards Division. It had been eliminated as a fighting force and served as a harbinger of things to come. The UN Forces had handed the NKPA its worst defeat but the Pusan Perimeter was still in danger. A turning point had been reached, at which the war would either become a slow battle of attrition along the Naktong or could be swiftly decided by a bold stroke. Gen. MacArthur had been planning just such a bold strok e to be executed at a place called Inchon! (Note that owners of SSG's Halls of Montezuma game can fight out the Inchon Invasion at their leisure.) This scenario has a map scale of 1 mile per hex. PLAYER'S NOTES UN FORCES. Your initial forces are tired and weak and probably won't be able to force the enemy from their heights. Concentrate on the Obong-ni ridge, using available forces to wear down the defenders. In case the enemy continues its offensive be content to protect your cities, Yongsan in particular. When the Marines arrive, rush them to Obong-ni and take the vital objectives. NKPA FORCES. Two strategies are available to you. You may be able to strike toward a key city, thus diverting UN forces from the Obong-ni area. Intelligence indicates that possible UN reinforcements may come from the south and possession of Namji may block their arrival. Or you can concentrate on holding Obong-ni and nearby high ground, restricting yourself to defence. Supply is critical and offensive actions should be taken only after careful consideration. SCENARIO VARIANTS (1) The original UN battle plan called for the entire force to attack at once and overwhelm the defenders on a broad front. Poor intelligence and marshy terrain led to piecemeal commitment of forces. Revert to the original plan, setting the arrival of all units to 0, except for the Marines. (2) When the Marines became available, a shortage of trucks required that 1st and 2nd Battalions had to march overnight, arriving at their deployment positions fatigued. Suppose that adequate transportation had been available and improve the fatigue ratings of the two units by 2 points. (3) The Marines were to be utilised two days sooner but their attack was delayed until aircraft carriers with additional air support could be repositioned. Allow the Leathernecks to be rushed to the front due to the seriousness of the situation. Change the Marine's arrival to turn 17 and reduce UN air support (daylight) by 10 points. (4) In order to enter the Naktong battle, the Marines had to be extracted from their operations near Chinju. If they could not have disengaged they would not have been available for the Naktong action. To remove the Marines from the scenario, enter a current strength value of 0 in all Marine units. Note that the 11th Artillery battalion is part of the Marine Group. UNSAN 25th October - 4th November, 1950 After the Inchon-Seoul campaign the UN faced an immediate anti-climax as no adequate follow-up plan had been devised. For even though X Corps had provided the anvil, the hammer of the 8th Army had failed to fall swiftly upon the NKPA along the Naktong line. The NKPA commanders had wisely kept the truth from their troops, ordering a steady withdrawal north. Had the front line soldiers known they were trapped, the anticipated rout may well have developed. As it was, they fought as well as ever, delaying the 8th Army break-out. This bought enough time for substantial portions of the NKPA to flee north of the 38th parallel. The resultant situation forced a crucial decision upon the UN, which it had not properly anticipated. Should they pursue the NKPA across the 38th parallel or not? To cross the line might ensure the defeat of the NKPR and re-unify Korea, but only at the risk of prompting military intervention by Russia or the People's Republic of China. To stop at the border would allow the NKPA to rebuild, perhaps to launch another invasion. In September 1950 the US National Security Council studied the matter and reported its findings to the Departments of State and Defence. They concluded that crossing the 38th parallel was not necessary for victory and that intervention by Russia and/or the PRoC was highly probable. If the line was to be crossed, three conditions were required. First, no UN troops were to cross the borders of Russia or the PRoC. Second, only ROK troops should be permitted to proceed north of the 38th parallel. Third, if either Russia or PRoC intervened, or threatened to do so, the operation must be cancelled. The US Joint Chiefs of Staff dismissed the report on the basis that military doctrine required the destruction of the NKPA to prevent a renewal of the war. They believed the ROK troops could mop up, with other UN forces confined to the south. The Central Intelligence Agency concluded that since the PRoC had failed to intervene on behalf of th e NKPR thus far, such action was no longer likely. In October, the UN passed a resolution allowing ROK forces to cross the 38th parallel. From late September throughout October, the PRoC used various public forums to express its concern and declared its intent to assist the NKPR. No action was taken against the ROK forces, although on October 10th, the PRoC clearly warned it would enter the war if US troops crossed the line. MacArthur knew the PRoC had massed troops along the Yalu but termed their intentions "unclear" and concluded no intervention was likely. The major stumbling block to UN thinking was that, while PRoC intervention in August would likely have sealed the fate of Pusan, and since the NKPR was nearly defeated by October, there was no longer reason for intervention. On October 19th, the NSC relented and President Truman allowed MacArthur to enter the NKPR if militarily necessary. After MacArthur's victory at Inchon, no one dared oppose him again. Seeing the defeat of the NKPA as militarily necessary under the circumstances, on October 25th, MacArthur ordered the whole of Korea secured by UN troops. MacArthur had never agreed with Truman's policy and often publicly called for military opposition to communism, even at the risk of war with Russia and the PRoC. As a throwback to WWII reasoning, a "total" victory was now sought over the NKPR. The PRoC had its own interests to protect and had been satisfied to allow the NKPR to conduct its own war, particularly since their victory had appeared likely. Even when the tide turned the PRoC did not react. When ROK forces entered the North, the PRoC still restrained itself fearing no harm from Korean troops. When, however, MacArthur appeared to have been given free rein and was racing towards the Manchurian border, the vital portal to the PRoC was exposed to hostile forces. Worse yet, MacArthur was willing to defy his own President and had oft stated his desire to invade the PRoC and reinstate the Nationalists to power. It is no mere coincidence that the Chinese sprang into action the day following MacArthur's order sending US troops across the 38th parallel! Ordered north with "all possible speed", the ROK II Corps rushed ahead. As part of an uncoordinated advance, the Corps was spread along the Chongchon river valley. The men of the Corps' 1st Division, perhaps the ROK's best troops, were unprepared to deal with the unknown danger ahead. Arriving at Unsan on October 25th, a company of US Army tanks led the 15th Regiment north of the town, until stopped cold by a road-block. Frustrated by this fierce new enemy, a few prisoners were rushed to General Paik for interrogation. Having fought similar troops in WWII, General Paik knew at once that these were soldiers of the People's Liberation Army of the PRoC. Despite warnings from the ROK II Corps, MacArthur dismissed the presence of Chinese troops as mere "volunteers" and of no special significance. Even on the brink of disaster, UN commanders ref used to believe the PRoC would intervene. More enemy troops massed from all sides. Huge forest fires spewed enough smoke to prohibit effective air support and artillery direction. Expert use of camouflage concealed an enemy who moved with swift silence along the hills, only to descend at night with a cacophony of whistles and bugles. By the end of the month, the ROK II Corps had ceased to exist. 1st Cavalry troops were sent north to hold the line. The 8th Regiment arrived first, followed by the 5th Regiment. They too were encircled, with supplies cut and losses mounting. It was all they could do to flee south, leaving most of their equipment behind. Yet another debacle had been forced on the UN. The Chinese Communist Forces, as they would be called throughout the war, had shown no fear of US firepower and a willingness to suffer heavy losses in order to defeat their foe. Yet having won their battles, they did not pursue the beaten UN forces. Still puzzled by the enigmatic Chinese, MacA rthur conceded that this was the "beginning of a new war". This scenario has a map scale of one half-mile per hex. PLAYER'S NOTES UN FORCES. Winding rivers and hilly terrain will cut your supplies easily enough, without having to worry about the Chinese. As a result, you will suffer a desperate supply shortage. Simply try to hold out with your ROK troops until reinforced by the Cavalry. With a lot of luck and good weather you may just survive! There is not much opportunity for assault as it will eat up supply and cause losses which you can ill afford. PRoC FORCES. Use terrain to your advantage, deploying on hills and attacking the enemy on roads and rough areas. Be mindful of poor weather, which will inhibit Allied air support, and always consider a night assault to cripple your foe. Do not attack too often as your supply will rapidly fail. Try to finish off the ROK by the end of the month and then deal with the Cavalry piecemeal. Use encirclement to ensure cutting the enemy supplies for his quick demise. SCENARIO VARIANTS (1) Poor supply hamstrung the ROK from the beginning. Assume Major-General Yu Jae Hung had not been so hasty in his advance and had prepared for better logistic support. Increase the supply values of all HQs in the 1st Division (ROK) by 2 points. (2) Chinese use of smoke and early snow drastically reduced both the amount and effectiveness of Allied support. Pray for northerly winds to clear the battlefield; increase Allied air support by 5 points and its effectiveness by 3 points. Raise the ratings of all Allied artillery by 1 point. (3) Allied troops were unable to deal with the unnerving nightly attacks by unseen PRoC troops. ROK troops in particular were unusually afraid of the new foe. Change the Allied troops to "night capable" in an attempt to balance the situation. CHONGCHON 25th November - 1st December, 1950 A new UN offensive began on November 24th as the 8th Army once again pushed toward the Yalu. On the west flank, I Corps was deployed. The ROK II Corps stood to the east while IX Corps advanced in the centre. Initially, the advance was steady along the entire front. Little did the UN troops know that the PRoC 38th Army had crossed the Yalu on November 10th. Moving only at night, they had eluded UN air reconnaissance and deployed along the Chongchon river by the 22nd. With time to rest and draw battle plans, an ambush of giant proportions was set. Always thinking on a large scale, General Lin Piao plotted the envelopment of the entire IX Corps. Heavy blows fell first upon the ROK 8th Division on the night of November 25th. As ROK units melted away, the entire right flank of IX Corps was suddenly exposed. Standard PRoC tactics of infiltration, road-blocks and envelopment destroyed ROK resistance. The US 2nd and 25th Divisions were assailed on and across the Chongchon, forcing the 25th Div ision to withdraw with heavy losses. The 2nd Division found extraction more difficult and was soon in an untenable salient. Its artillery positions, supposedly a safe distance behind the "front", were directly attacked by infantry from the PRoC 113th Division. As the 2nd Division had been centred on Kujang-dong, this became a crucial point of defence for the UN troops. With the fall of Tokchon, a southerly escape route had to be held open. Kujang-dong was one of two routes upon which the PRoC advance could be blocked. By November 27th, 2nd Division's right flank was in danger of collapse and withdrawal to Kunuri was necessary. To bolster the left flank and block the advance of the PRoC 114th Division, the newly arrived crack Turkish Army Command Force (TACF) was sent towards Wawon. Just east of there PRoC road-blocks stopped the Turks. Heavy fighting induced fearsome losses on both sides as the Chinese finally met an opponent who would not yield. In time, even the Turks had to withdraw , having held off the PRoC advance long enough for the 2nd Division remnants to filter south. Within the closing trap only two routes of escape remained open. To the south-west, through a long road adjacent to the Chongchon, the cities of Anju and Sinanju remained in UN hands. The 1st Cavalry Division had been called from reserve and its 5th RCT held open the gate at Anju. A more direct route to the south passed through steep hills, towards Sunchon, where the remainder of the 1st Cavalry Division waited. Though a seemingly quicker route, PRoC troops had conducted yet another envelopment and had infested the pass. Thus, exhausted and beaten, UN troops had to run a veritable gauntlet of fire. By December 1st, the survivors of 2nd Division had reached Sunchon and another UN offensive had been smashed by a heretofore unseen enemy. Chinese troops were credited with superhuman abilities due to their lack of fear in the face of horrendous losses. In the waning days of December, the 8th army f led more than 120 miles despite the lack of pursuit. The longest retreat in the history of the US military had ended and UN morale had been utterly shattered in the woeful trek up the Chongchon, and down the "Gauntlet". This scenario has a map scale of 1.2 miles per hex. PLAYER'S NOTES UN FORCES. You can try to destroy individual PRoC units initially but your goal is to occupy key objectives as long as possible without squandering manpower. The TACF is the best regiment in the scenario and may blunt the whole PRoC 114 Division's advance if properly used. PRoC FORCES. Be mindful of terrain and use envelopment to keep the enemy out of supply, thus balancing his day-time air support. Use night attack when support is available. Upon facing the TACF you must choose whether to fight head-on with heavy losses or try to envelop, holding the "Gauntlet" in the process. SCENARIO VARIANTS (1) Due to enormous communication difficulties, the TACF could not be used effectively. They were simply pointed in a direction and left to fight independently. Assume that General Coulter had wisely provided the TACF with an interpreter and a radio. Raise the TACF regimental supply and admin values by 2 points each and bring forward the arrival of the IX Corps Div HQ to turn 7. (2) When the ROK II Corps was routed, the ROK 7th Division fled west. The 3rd Regiment passed Tokchon but the 5th and 8th Regiments never arrived. Allow remnants of these regiments to filter through PRoC lines, thereby arriving on the battlefield about the same time as the 3rd Regiment. The 5th and 8th Regiments are already entered in the data base, but because their current strength values have been set to 0, they are dormant and take no part in the game. To bring them to life, alter the current strength values as follows; 1st Bn/5th Regt (4), 2nd Bn/5th Regt (5), 1st Bn/8th Regt (3), 2nd Bn/8th Regt (3). (3) As was their curse throughout the war, PRoC offensives withered after the first few days due to lack of supply. Assume the swiftness of their advance had forced Allied troops to abandon large amounts of materiel which the PRoC could use. Increase PRoC Div HQ supply levels by 3 points each. CHOSIN RESERVOIR 27th November - 4th December, 1950 In November 1950, X Corps was assigned to assist the 8th Army in its northern advance by seizing the village of Yudam-ni on the western shore of the frozen Chosin Reservoir. The Marines were to advance west to cut the NKPA/PRoC supply lines at Mupyongni, then turn north to the Yalu. Upon reaching the Manchurian frontier, the "Home By Christmas" campaign would be declared a success and the Korean War would have been "won" by the UN. On paper the plan appeared simple enough but there was some dissent. USMC Commandant General Gate warned that X Corps was "going out on a limb" and that a winter campaign in the mountains of North Korea was "too much to ask" of army or marine troops. In particular, he cited difficulty in maintaining supply and evacuation of personnel. Unfortunately for the men required to fight the battles, General Gate's prophetic warning was ignored. Once again "total victory" fever prohibited UN generals from realising they had crossed an historic threshold into an era of limited war. Meanwhile General Peng had drawn up a plan of his own, sending the formidable 9th Army Group to Chosin. The sole task of the eight divisions involved was to destroy the 1st Marine Division as they would kill a "snake" in their homes. Deployment was swift enough to place the 124th Division ahead of the marines at Funchilin Pass on November 2nd.. By November 7th, PRoC troops had withdrawn and the Marine advance continued. By November 26th, the Marine vanguard arrived at Yudam and within a day the 5th and 7th Regiments were both deployed. 1st Regiment was spread about Haguru and Koto to keep the supply lines open. The Marines at Yudam could expect no relief if they required it. Soon enough they realised they had run into a Chinese dragon of Corps dimensions. The PRoC 78th and 89th Divisions took strong positions on the prominent ridges, virtually surrounding the valley in which Yudam was located. As they tried to pin the Marines in place, the 59th Division swept along the we st, cutting the supply lines between Yudam and Toktong Pass. General Peng had set a clever trap but he too came to realise he had taken hold of the Tiger's tail! Had any other troops of the UN conglomeration been thus entrapped their fate would have been as Custer at the Little Big Horn. The Marines, however, were trained as assault troops. Even their service personnel could fight beside the shock troops with no lack of skill or discipline. In addition, the Marines enjoyed the best close air support of the war with most of their 11th Battalion artillery in place as well. Though considered the best troops of China, the divisions at Chosin suffered the same basic faults which crippled every PRoC campaign. Supply was never adequate beyond the first few days of an attack so that penetration of enemy positions could rarely be exploited. Effective communication existed only to the regiment level, meaning that HQ orders often took up to two days to filter down to engaged battalions. This dela y seriously offset the superior mobility of PRoC troops, leading to uncoordinated attacks and heavy losses. Inadequate administration allowed thousands to die from normally non-fatal wounds, simply due to lack of proper care. In effect, the Chinese traded off every advantage but manpower. That alone would be cast against the firepower of a small force of men with a common will of steel. It is no accident that General Peng chose as his first priority the destruction of the "soldiers with the yellow leggings". A characteristic pattern of the Korean War repeated itself along the shores of the Chosin as both sides fought for control of the high ground. PRoC troops probed and attacked by night, trying to overrun Marine positions at any cost. If the defenders survived until dawn, Corsairs pursued and eliminated the massed attackers. Often, hundreds of bodies were seen piled about the defensive perimeters of Marine positions. Finally, the Marines knew they had taken the "best punch" of their enemy. While news reports back home predicted the imminent defeat of both the 8th Army and Marines, the leathernecks themselves knew they could not be beaten. Nevertheless, they were ordered south to Haguru as part of a general UN retreat. When asked about the retreat General Smith stated simply "We are not retreating ... we are just attacking in another direction". With precisely that determination, the 1st Marine Division cut a path through enemy lines, arriving at Haguru by December 4th. With that act of defiance the Marines had been as a candle in a whirlwind, casting the only light of hope in the disastrous defeat of the Chosin Reservoir. This scenario has a map scale of 1 mile per hex. PLAYER'S NOTES UN FORCES. Your forces are mighty but must be used properly to survive. Establish a perimeter, then use one regiment to hold Yudam as the other clears the supply lines. Probe often, exploiting only to seize objectives. Wanton assaults will eliminate targets but at an unacceptable cost. Ultimately, leap-frog to Toktong Pass where you should find relief. PRoC FORCES. The PRoC battalions were so tightly packed together that UN supporting fire caused very heavy losses. Therefore, send the 59th Division to cut the UN supply lines at Toktong Pass and then probe and assault the Yudam defenders. Combined with night attacks, you may just wear down the Marines to the point of collapse. Seize every objective possible to ensure a victory on VPs, despite your tactical losses. SCENARIO VARIANTS (1) Originally, the entire Marine 1st Regiment was to garrison Haguru. Add the 2nd and 3rd battalions of the regiment to the UN Order of Battle. Add a company of 105mm Howitzers. Furthermore, alter the movement allowance of the 1st Bn/1st Regt from 0 to 8. It is thus freed from stationary garrison duty. How to make these changes is explained, step by step, in Chapter 4 of the WarPlan section of this manual. (2) Poor communication and supply prevented the PRoC from pursuit, even when the Marines finally withdrew. Raise each Regt HQ supply rating by 2 points on the assumption that General Peng had had enough time to stockpile at various points around the ridges. Even though Div HQ was ineffective, the troops could have been better supplied. (3) Extremely frigid weather wreaked havoc on both sides, freezing automatic weapons and plasma, as well as any unfortunate soul with more than flesh wound. Under such brutal conditions you may designate each side "brittle". Input 70%/80% for Axis/Allied scenario briefings, and designate each HQ as brittle. (4) Unearthly cold and high altitude also played the Devil with UN aircraft which could easily have reduced the amount of available support. Reduce Allied support points by 10 to represent this. CHIPYONG 13th - 16th February, 1951 The winter of 1950-51 was a traumatic period for UN commanders who saw the defeat of their entire force and the entry of a frightening juggernaut into the war. A demigod to many, even the irrepressible General MacArthur had become a doom sayer. Ordering the 8th Army to retreat to the original beachhead "bastions" if necessary, he gravely predicted the total destruction of his command unless the PRoC mainland was invaded at once. To that end, he urged the immediate release of Nationalist Chinese troops and the use of nuclear weapons, even at the risk of escalation to WWIII! President Truman found himself in a political tug-of-war with his military commander, further upsetting the UN effort. Reluctantly, the goal of reunification of the peninsula was abandoned. In a final tragic note, perhaps symbolic of the sorry turn of events, General Walker died in a traffic accident on December 23rd, leaving the 8th Army without a leader. General Ridgway found himself cast into the fray as commander of a defeated army, often retreating when there was no pressure from the enemy. Except for the Marines, the morale of UN troops was at an all time low. A student of the bold General Patton, Ridgway took immediate steps to regain the initiative. Commanders were ordered to lead their troops from the field, as opposed to their former practice of taking residence in rear area headquarters. Front line troops engaged in aggressive patrols, increasing both their intelligence of enemy actions and their confidence in combat. Units were kept in interlocking formations, preserving front lines and preventing envelopment. Every form of supporting fire was utilised to cauterise objectives so that ground troops could secure their goals in relative safety. Artillery ammunition was expended with such volume that US Congressmen even complained of the cost! As a net result, the 8th army was soon ready for a measured advance north. General Ridgway intended to squeeze terrain from the enemy, exacting the heaviest toll possible and forcing resolution of the war on the negotiating table. Gone were the days of reckless advance and crusty old notions of total victory. Marking a crucial turning point in the history of warfare, Gen. Ridgway turned the battlefields of Korea into giant "meat-grinders", capable of stopping the great red dragon of China. The era of limited war had begun. General Ridgway's offensive began on February 5th, 1951 as X Corps and the I and II Corps from the ROK began a large scale envelopment to destroy huge portions of the PRoC army. The ROK 5th Division attacked on the right flank, north-east of Hoengsong to the Hongchon-Pugnam line. On the left, the ROK 8th Division attacked to the Yongduchon-Hongchon line. The US 7th Division drove up the Pyongchang-Hoengsong road while the US 2nd Division was held in reserve along the Chipyong-Wonju axis. The PRoC 40th and 60th Armies, with NKPA II and V Corps counterattacked. As always, a weak point was found in the ROK lines, a nd by February 11th, the ROK 8th Division was routed. UN Forces fell back some 5-20 miles along the whole front, leaving the US 2nd Division in an exposed salient. General Moore was ordered to hold firm, for if Chipyong fell, the corridor to Yoju would be left unguarded. That in turn would allow PRoC forces to sweep behind X Corps, south-east along the Han River. The 23rd Regiment (US 2nd Div) deployed among the hills at Chipyong, with time enough to fortify and lay mines. Supporting units were deployed to take advantage of natural terrain, which served to funnel the enemy into a meat-grinder. Firmly at the core of the defence was a crack French battalion. General Peng was an able commander but cursed with a stubborn nature. With recent PRoC victories along the Chongchon and Chosin he had no reason to think his veteran Corps could not push aside a mere regiment. Probing attacks began the night of February 13th, only to leave hundreds of Chinese dead at the base of the hills by morning light. Inflexible and incensed, he continued to push his troops south in the days to come. Despite the success of their tactics, the Chipyong defenders could not hold out forever. Relief was dispatched on February 14th from Yoju in the form of a regiment from the 1st Cavalry Division. In keeping with their finest traditions, the cavalry arrived just in the nick of time and prevented a PRoC breakthrough. By February 16th, the three PRoC divisions fell back, leaving 5,000 dead behind. General Ridgway was so impressed with the victory he personally viewed the battlefield even while it was being secured. Like a phoenix, 8th Army had risen from the ashes of Chosin and avenged itself at the crossroads of Chipyong. This scenario has a map scale of 1 hex per 1/2 mile. PLAYER'S NOTES UN FORCES. Adhere to General Ridgway's strategy by relying on probes and heavy support to bear the burden of the fighting and your troops will do well. But beware poor weather, which will require more modest efforts. Push the 5th Cavalry Regiment hard to reach Chipyong promptly and you should win. PRoC FORCES. Attack during foul weather and darkness when the defenders have the least support. With three divisions at your disposal you can completely encircle the 23rd Regiment and then try to prevent the 5th Cavalry from reaching them. You may be able to win Chipyong in the process. There are large VPs for reaching southern objectives but you are not likely to get that far! SCENARIO VARIANTS (1) The presence of prepared fortifications around Chipyong may be debated so remove them and let's see if the defenders can still hold. After all, the swiftness of PRoC advance may have prevented such construction. (2) The map dimensions restrict PRoC envelopment options. Allow for greater penetration of UN lines by reducing the Axis adjacent enemy-hex penalties to "0" for all 6 hexes. IMJIN 22nd - 26th April , 1951 Slowly but surely, General Ridgway's strategy was pushing PRoC forces north, and by March 15th Operation Ripper had freed Seoul. Never again would the ROK capital be lost and the 38th parallel was being re-established as a line of division between North and South Korea. On March 30th, the US 3rd Division had established itself on the front line with the Commonwealth 29th Brigade in deployment along the Imjin river where it meets the Hanton river. Numbering 6,000 men, 29th Brigade consisted of 1 Bn Gloucestershire Regt, 1 Bn Royal Northumberland Fusiliers, 1 Bn Royal Ulster Rifles, a Belgian Bn, 8 King's Royal Irish Hussars, 45 Rgt Royal Artillery and 170 Independent Mortar Battery. In support there was a veteran Philippine armoured unit and a Puerto Rican infantry Bn. The Imjin defenders were truly representative of the United Nations war effort. North of the river, General Peng was implementing his first step, 5th phase offensive. PRoC divisions were suffering horrendous attrition, du e to the effective "meat-grinder" devised by General Ridgway. Many raw recruits filled the ranks but some veterans still remained. General Peng organised the 63rd Army around his veteran survivors, planning to use them in yet another advance on Seoul. His plan was to operate on a very tight timetable, sending 187th, 188th and 189th divisions across the Imjin, through 29th Brigade, and 56 kilometres to the south, capturing Seoul by May-Day as a gift to Joseph Stalin. Time was of the essence because General Van Fleet could not organise the defence of Seoul in that short time and General Peng was confident his 20,000 veteran troops could sweep aside the hopelessly outnumbered UN forces in the blocking position. PRoC advance elements began crossing the Imjin, probing the Commonwealth defenders, on the afternoon of the 22nd. By the next day, two full divisions were pressing hard against the defenders. Lacking mines or fortifications, the men of 29th Brigade relied upon the one advantage no adversity could steal from them; discipline. With cool professionalism, officers gave relentless orders to fire and reload, resulting in a mechanical and devastating level of firepower. Waves of Chinese were cut as wheat, followed by still more attackers. UN air strikes produced still more withering fire and yet the Chinese attacked with their typical resolve. Of all units on the field of battle that day, the "Glosters" upheld the honour of their ancestors even beyond the limits of human endurance. After relief efforts failed the "Glosters" refused to retreat. By battle's end, surrounded but still fighting, scarcely 39 men of the original 800 had survived. By the 26th, 29th Brigade withdrew to Ui Jongbu with 25% losses. The veteran PRoC Divisions had suffered 40% casualties and were virtually knocked out of the war. A shining example of heroism, the defiant stand of 29th Brigade along the shallow banks of the Imjin had dealt the Chinese offensive a heavy blow, protecting the left flank of I Corps and allowing for the defence of Seoul. Even more important, the Imjin battle had once again proven UN resolve to resist any military force, despite the odds, and helped to force the enemy to the negotiating table for an eventual end to the bloody conflict. This scenario has a map scale of 1 hex per 1/2 mile. PLAYER'S NOTES UN FORCES. Your forces are represented in small units with each Rgt equal to one Bn and each Bn equal to rough platoon size. This allows the tactical options which were available to your historical counterparts but severely limits the amount of damage each unit can take before its destruction. With that in mind, you may attack effectively but must attentively watch fatigue, supply and losses. With careful management you can hold the PRoC onslaught to the end of the scenario. PRoC FORCES. 29th Brigade is small but formidable. You can not expect anything but heavy losses until about turn 10. With careful use of probes and night attacks the tide will then turn. Try to decimate key defensive positions and penetrate to objectives. With brilliant play you could just manage to win. SCENARIO VARIANTS (1) 29th Brigade had been deployed in "temporary" positions. Thus no special defensive efforts had been undertaken, despite the fact that it was known that large PRoC forces had gathered to the north. Assume a more prudent course of action had been followed. Place mines at each river crossing and fortify one position of your choosing for each of the three "Regt's" of 29th Brigade deployed along the river. (2) PRoC forces suffered from their usual lack of supply, thus weakening their offensive effort just when exploitation could have won the battle. Increase the Div HQ and each Rgt level of supply by "1" to represent better logistical planning. (3) With three full divisions at their disposal, the PRoC might have done a better job of penetrating and encircling the 29th Brigade positions. To simulate this ability, reduce the adjacent enemy hex penalties for the PRoC by 2 point per hex. AFTERMATH By the end of April 1951, the JCS realised that it was unlikely for the war to end by decisive victory for either side. In effect, stalemate had occurred. Seeking non-military pressure to force an end to the war, the UN General Assembly placed an economic embargo on the PRoC on May 18th, 1951. As both sides sat down to negotiate, the delegations agreed by late July to the certain terms. (1) The adoption of an agenda for future talks. (2) The creation of a "Demilitarised Zone" along the 38th parallel. (3) The creation of a body to supervise the DMZ. (4) An arrangement for POW release. (5) The development of recommendations to governments concerned with the war. As political pressure stalled the UN advance, the PRoC took advantage of the lull to entrench and fortify north of the 38th parallel. Virtual WWI trench warfare had become the latest twist in the Gordian knot of the Korean War. After one year of open warfare, two years of negotiation dragged on. New pressure was required to force the PRoC to settle the issue. Following the death of Joseph Stalin and the election of President Eisenhower, the US renewed thinly veiled threats to use nuclear weapons. An armistice was signed in July 1953 but no formal peace treaty has ever been agreed upon. In the course of the war, the US lost 34,000 troops, the ROK 50,000, the NKPR 500,000 and the PRoC 900,000. It should be noted that the North Korean and Chinese casualties are American estimates and should possibly be taken with a grain (or ten) of salt. In addition, most of the Korean Peninsula was laid waste. Little was resolved between the emerging super-powers and if one benefit from this bloody war was evident, it was the horrific cost and minimal gains of conventional warfare fought by massive, modern and determined armies.